A Change Of Destiny
by Scott Evilton
Summary: A twist of fate brought two people from different worlds together, to face a battle that neither of them can run away from... After The Vampire Prince & Harry Potter & The Order of The Phoenix ;9
1. Deadly Encounter

Disclaimer: In my dreams I own it. Wakakaka… *Evil Laugh# Enjoy! ;D While you can…

* * *

It was a cold dark night as usual.

Distant stars flickered endlessly in the black sky, trying to push back the darkness that was so _suffocating_.

A raven haired boy stared at the sky sadly, deep in thought.

"Even the smallest light shines in the dark, always keep that in mind Harry," chuckled Sirius as he ruffled his godson's unruly dark hair.

_Sirius_… He sighed, how he wished he could see his godfather again.

The emptiness he felt when he pulled back the veil, only to find that Sirius was gone, _forever_.

Letting out a dejected sigh, he slumped his shoulders and slowly, painfully dragged his battered body back to Privet Drive. Grimacing every now and again as his movement sent waves of pain through his body.

_Why they could not just leave me alone?_

He had a run in with Dudley and his band of thugs at Skyle Park earlier.

Harry mentally kicked himself for letting them spot him when he was sulking alone on a park bench.

Dudley advanced on him and bad-mouthed his friends, calling them freaks.

The raven haired boy knew his good-for-nothing cousin was egging him to fight back, so he could beat him in front of his friends.

Harry clenched his fist, trying futilely to push back the anger that was boiling inside him.

_Everyone's patience had a limit. _

Without warning, his fist flew out and hit Dudley square in the face, breaking one of his teeth.

_OoW!_

He felt a sense of triumph as he stood his ground clutching his fist.

_That's gonna leave a bruise_, he mentally noted, flexing his fingers.

"I'm gonna get you!" roared Dudley. His teethes stained with blood.

"Bring it on!" taunt Harry as a sudden surge of adrenaline made him feel invincible.

Well, things did not turn out as well as he had thought.

Logically speaking, since when four to one is a fair fight?

He got bashed up pretty bad.

* * *

A sudden gust of strong wind sent shivers down his spine, snapping him out of his thoughts. He pulled his cloak tighter around himself and quickens his pace. He could tell that a storm is coming and he should be home by now.

Rounding a bend, he came to an intersection.

Should he take the brightly lit main road, or the short cut through the dark alley?

Either way he could reach home, why not take the shorter way? _Why Not?_

Never had he known that this one choice could change his life forever.

* * *

Hurrying down a dark alleyway was not a very good idea when you are not in a great shape and had to limp.

Harry tripped a few times, landing flat on his face, when his foot caught on some unknown rubbish.

"People these days, just didn't know how to take care of their rubbish eh?" He muttered under his breath.

Crawling up, he continued on his journey, hoping against hope that he could quickly leave this dark, unfriendly, foul-smelling place behind.

_Crunch._

He snapped around, there was no one there.

But he swore that he heard someone. Maybe his mind is tricking him, _must be fatigue_.

Letting go of the thought, he broke into a jog, ignoring the fiery pain that shot through his right leg.

With each step he took, an uneasy feeling slowly builds up inside him.

_Crunch._

There was it again!

The urge to get away from that place was even alarming now.

_Crunch. Crunch._

He ran.

He had almost reached the end, when out of the blue a dark shape burst out of the shadows and slammed into him. He was roughly shoved into the slimy wall, his breath momentarily knocked out of him.

Before he could regain his composure, the dark shadow grabbed him by the collar and pushed him against the wall. His flailing arms were a feeble attempt to ward off his attacker.

The dark shape towered above him.

"_Ahh…_ _The sweet smell of a wizard's blood. How lucky am I_?" sneered the unearthly creature; his mouth stank of the city sewers.

"Let go of me!" gasped the weakened prey in his hands.

Harry swung a kick at his attacker's stomach.

The dark shadow blocks his flaccid attempt easily, catching his leg with one hand.

"_Oooh… A fighter eh?_ Let's make sure that you couldn't do it again, _shall we?_"

And he twisted the boy's leg.

A piercing scream rang through the air, scarring a few bats out of its hiding place.

Harry felt as if his leg was on fire, _burning_, eating away at his flesh.

He bit back a whimper when he saw his leg twisted at an abnormal angle.

Dangling a few feet above the air, unable to fight back, _hopeless_…

"_How about I take away that pain then?_ " Whispered the merciless creature at his ear.

_"No…" was_ all that the raven haired boy could manage to utter before the dark creature sank his teethes into the helpless boy's neck.

Was this the end of Harry Potter, the Savior of the wizarding world?

* * *

Author's note: Yay! It's a cliff hanger! Want to know what happened to poor Harry? Stay tuned to Scott Evilton's Devilish world! Muwahahahaha… chokes on a pickled onion.


	2. Hot Waters

Disclaimer: It's mine! It's mine! No!!!! It **Isn't** mine :(

* * *

"Wow, a vampire prince… That hasn't even crossed my mind. Not once," said Darren as he swung idly in his hammock in the tent he shared with Evra.

"I thought I was going to die."

"You got through it though, lucky you," laughed Evra, "Ha! I never thought I get to see you again after you left with to that Vampire Mountain."

"You didn't think I'll come back?"

"Your chances are quite slim, judging by your skinny stature," joked Evra, stroking his prized pet snake.

"You are so unbelievable," commented the half-vampire. He stretched in his hammock, popping a few of his joints. "Ah, that feels good."

"And annoying," replied his green-scaled friend.

_Crack._

"What's that?" Darren asked, startled.

"What's what?"

_Crack._

"That."

"I didn't hear anything," answered Evra.

"Are you sur…"

_CRACK._

Right at that moment, one of the beams that supported the tent snapped and one side of the tent crashed down, bringing Darren's hammock with it.

"Ahhhh!!!!"

"Stop screaming like a girl!"

Darren lay sprawled in a tangled heap on the floor, glaring daggers at Evra, and his cheeks was a bright red.

"HahaHAHAHA!!" Evra burst out laughing.

"_Evra_," he said in a threatening tone, "Did you know anything about this?"

"Umm…No, but I know that the termite knows."

"Ha! Funny, since when did you learn to talk to the wood eating ants?"

"Just now."

"Prove it."

And he bolted.

"You are not going to get away with this!" shouted Darren. He quickly untangled himself and went after his quarry.

A few hours later…

The half-vampire was out walking on his own, after he had dealt with his friend…

"Ah… the sweet smell of the night."

Strolling down an empty street, he quietly admire the peaceful night.

Darren had found himself liking his more often than not nighttime roaming; _perhaps it's the unseen change inside him._

He had dreaded the moment that will soon come when he won't be able to stand under the warm-welcoming rays of the sun anymore. But as time moves on, he realized that it couldn't be that bad after all. The peaceful night… And the moon for a change instead of the bright sun.

He was going to miss it though.

Suddenly, the tranquil night air was shattered by an agonized scream.

It was quite faint, but enough for Darren's ears to pick up.

Immediately, he sprinted towards the source.

Nearing a dark alley, he smelled something that instantly put him on high alert.

_Blood…_ That was no mistaking it.

Being as quite as he could, he slipped onto a roof, he would have a better view there.

The scene that greeted him wasn't one that he would be likely to forget very soon.

That vampaneze was horrible. In fact, it is one of the ugliest he had ever seen.

The purple skin of his face sagged alarmingly, with pus leaking out of the dozen pores…

And that devil ugliest creation was sucking greedily on the blood of a boy!

Darren got to act fast if the boy still got a chance.

He can't face a full grown vampaneze alone! That would be suicidal!

He had no other options; it was either the boy or be haunt by guilt forever.

_May the luck of the vampires with me! _And he took his chances; he wasn't going to leave the boy.

Taking a steel bar, he crept up behind the feeding vampaneze.

The full force of the vampaneze's smell hit him when he was just a few paces away.

_Oh my, he stinks!_ He thought and he held his breath.

Aiming at the vampaneze's neck, his weakest point, Darren swung the steel bar with all his might.

There was a grunt and the vampaneze slid to the ground, knocked out senseless, but not dead, unfortunately.

Darren quickly dropped the steel bar and hurried to the boy.

The boy was deathly pale because of the blood loss and there wasn't a moment to lose.

He scooped the injured boy into his arms, not realizing that the vampaneze was stirring.

The vampaneze opened his eyes groggily, his head spinning from the blow, and then he saw…

That half-vampire! That nosy 's assistant!

Taking chance of the boy's distraction, he slid a dagger out from his waist belt and…

Darren was about to head back to the Cirque, when he heard something moved behind him.

He turned.

Too late.

He felt a sharp stab at his hip.

Almost instantly a blinding pain erupted. He groaned and slumped to the ground clutching his side. The boy slipped from his grip.

The vampaneze grinned evilly at him, enjoying the pain that he had inflicted on him.

_No, it couldn't end like this_, his mind screamed at him.

After the first wave of pain had passed, Darren painfully pushed himself up. He was not going to give up that easily. He subconsciously berated himself for not finishing off the vampaneze when he had the chance.

The black dagger was lodged in his flesh and he dare not pulled it out for fear of doing more damage to himself.

He got to fight the vampaneze, in the state he was in; he did not stand a chance.

But wits over brawns.

At least he was smarter.

Picking up the steel bar he had dropped earlier, he stood his ground, clenching his teeth as he tried to push back the throbbing pain at his side.

_If he was going to die, he would die fighting._

_

* * *

_

Author's note: _Wakakaka...  
_


	3. Death Fight

Disclaimer: Ha! It's mine! Wakakakaka...

* * *

"Well, well, well, isn't it Mr. Crepsley's assistant, trying to be a hero, eh?" The unearthly creature said in a mocking tone, brandishing a hooked blade he had taken out.

"I do not wish to fight you. Leave before Mr. Crepsley comes and kills you," Darren replied as calmly as he could, trying to trick the vampaneze into believing him.

"Oooh…I'm so scared," The purple creature taunted him.

"Larten doesn't scare me," He spat, "Although it would be a waste to kill you, so young…so chivalrous. But…"

A twisted smile formed at his lips.

"I'll enjoy cutting you into pieces."

And he charged.

Taken by surprise, Darren ducked on instinct and narrowly avoided the blade from cutting his head clean off his shoulders.

The _whoosh_ of the blade above his head sent shivers down his spine.

_That's a close shave_, he thought as he tried to stab at the blood-thirsty vampaneze with the steel bar.

The vampaneze side stepped his attempt easily, laughing maniacally.

"That's all you've got?" He mocked and threw a well-aimed kick at Darren's stomach.

There was a sickening crunch as the vampaneze's iron like leg connected with its target.

Instantly, all the air was knocked out of him and he crashed into a pile of rubbish.

Stunned and gasping for air, he tried to move. But, each small movement sent waves of excruciating pain through his body.

Moving with an inhuman speed, the vampaneze zoomed forward and grabbed him by the neck. Darren lashed out at the creature, succeeding in injuring the vampaneze's hands.

Agitated, the vampaneze tighten his grip, completely cutting off Darren's oxygen supply.

Being a half-vampire, Darren was able to hold off much longer than humans without oxygen. But the comforting darkness at the edge of his consciousness was slowly creeping in.

He struggled futilely against the vampaneze's vice like grip, his lungs burning for oxygen.

Dark spots formed in front of his vision as he slowly drifts into unconsciousness.

Suddenly.

The grip loosens.

Darren fell to the ground with a thud, wheezing as he tried to pull in a few precious breaths of oxygen.

He broke into a coughing fit as his broken rib punctured his left lung.

The half-vampire let out a cry when the vampaneze stepped on his back, his fingernails digging into the grit.

"Are you enjoying this?" He jeered, pressing down harder.

Darren's visions blurred as the searing pain shot through his ribs.

_Oh god it hurts._

Feeling around for something on the grimy floor to fend off his enemy, he found…

_Nothing._

There was only one thing he could do.

Biting back an agonized scream, he grabbed the handle of the dagger jutting out of his hip.

And pulled.

* * *

The vampaneze was too busy relishing his easy victory over the young half-vampire that he didn't realize the attack that was coming until it was too late.

With a swing of his arm, Darren slashed the vampaneze's thigh, severing one of his main arteries.

_ARRGH!!_

The vampaneze fell, clutching at his leg.

Darren painfully pulled himself up, grimacing as his sudden movement flared up his pain receptors.

The deep booming sound of a truck horn rang through the air.

He had a plan.

And he had seconds to decide.

Darren broke into a run, heading towards the main road.

The vampaneze got up and pursued him.

_Even with a wound to his thigh, that vampaneze sure ran fast. _

He threw his hooked blade at Darren.

A searing, paralyzing pain shot through his back.

Darren stumbled, unrelenting to the serious wound, he pushed on.

Reaching the end, something slammed into him.

Darren and the vampaneze rolled onto the main road, struggling with each other.

A 30-tonne truck bore down on the two entangled form on the road.

The truck horn blared.

They didn't budge.

_A devastating accident was inevitable._

_

* * *

_Author's note: ;D Stay where you are...


	4. Saving the Saviour

Disclaimer: Well, to tell you the truth, it **may** have been mine in an alternate world! Haha! But sadly *sigh* not this :)

* * *

"_Going somewhere_?" the vampaneze sneered as he tried to grab hold of Darren's exposed neck.

A truck horn sounded.

Darren delivered a blow to the vampaneze's face, temporarily blinding him.

The vampaneze roared in pain.

"Heads up!" And he flattened himself on the road.

"Oh…o" Eyes wide, the vampaneze stared at the bright headlights of an incoming truck before it rammed into him.

The roar of the truck's engine was deafening.

Darren's ears was still ringing as he lay there, breathing heavily.

_I'm alive_, he breathed, not believing his luck.

But he still got to get off the road though.

The truck came to a stop a few yards away. There was the bang of a door; the driver came down to look.

"Oh my!" exclaimed the driver, shocked to his core when he saw the remains of the vampaneze splattered across the front of his truck.

He shakily pulled out his hand phone and dialed the police.

_The police were coming, he got to move before they came, can't be seen…_

Getting up, he staggered to the boy.

Fortunately, the driver didn't see the half-vampire as he disappeared into the shadows.

The raven haired boy was bleeding profusely on the ground; a dark pool was slowly forming around his neck, soaking his sweater. It seemed that the vampaneze had bitten a chunk out of him.

_Please don't be dead_, prayed the half-vampire as he knelt down beside the boy, checking his pulse.

There was still a faint beat, but not for long.

Darren torn a piece off his shirt and tied it around the boy's neck, staunching the flow.

_He got to move the boy, in the state he's in, how's he gonna do that?_

And with the injuries he'd sustained in the fight, he's going to bleed to death himself too.

Ignoring the pain that flared up everywhere as he moved, Darren tried to pick up the boy.

Without warning, a wave of dizziness hit him, he collapsed on the grimy floor, unable to move, and gritting his teeth as the pain became unbearable.

_He was going to die._

_Just like that?_

There was the sound of footsteps heading towards him.

He vaguely saw the dark shape of a man before the comforting darkness claimed him.

* * *

Severus Snape was on his way home, using the usual routes, cutting through the dark alleyways with his cloak billowing after him, when he unexpectedly stumbled across the seriously wounded Harry Potter and Darren Shan.

"What in the Devil's name…" He stopped in his tracks, squinting in the dark.

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, he quickly took out his wand and tried to heal the wounds as best as he could.

Without further ado, he grabbed hold of the two injured boys and apparated to St. Mungo's hospital.

* * *

Dr. Alex Chase had already repaired a hernia and was washing up while Clive Casper and the team anesthesiologist did a final check of the patient's blood pressure and heart rate to make sure he was okay before turning him over to Jenny Clearwater, the nurse, for monitoring.

He had just moved here from Romania and was happy that they had a very good team working here. He sometimes did miss the scenery back home in Craiova, Romania. But, he knew he had to leave there.

After the freak accident that had taken away his wife and fourteen-year old son's life, his world had turned upside down. Burying himself in work was the only way he could think of to ease the pain that would somehow become too unbearable if he did nothing.

By saving lives that would otherwise been lost, he found _comfort._

He was thinking about the next case, when he heard a commotion in the hallway just outside the door.

There was shouting and cursing, some scuffling sounds, and high-pitched wails.

He dried his hands and started for the door just as Paige Knowles, another nurse, began yelling for him.

He hit the door, already running and skidded to a halt in the hallway before he rammed into a knot of people that included, John, Paige, a few nurses and a man. They were carrying two blood drenched boys between them.

The crushed of bodies hid the wounded boys' face, but he could guessed that they were quite young, at around fifteen to seventeen years old perhaps.

He quickly switched into emergency mode.

"What happened?" He asked as he checked the injured boys.

_One of them seemed to have fared better than the other, who suffered multiple wounds to his back and side._

"They had been attacked," answered Snape in a tight voice,"I've healed some of their wounds, but I think one of them sustained internal damage." He gestured towards Darren.

"There is only so much magic can do," noted the doctor, "John! Help me get the boy onto the gurney."

Turning to Paige, he said, "Take the other boy, give him a blood transfusion and mend his broken leg, okay?"

Nodding, she hurried away with Snape cradling Harry in his arms.

Without wasting any more time, they rapidly wheeled Darren into the surgical bay he had just left.

Clive, alerted by the hubbub, burst back into the room.

"My god," he blurted when he saw the boy; then he fell silent and began readying his equipment.

They hadn't had time to clean the operating room, or restock the supplies on the trays. Jenny apparated in and began grabbing what they'd need.

Clive wrapped a blood pressure cuff around Darren's limp arm and swiftly pumped it up, while Andrea used the shears to cut away his clothing.

"Blood type O negative," Jenny was saying, "And there's something you should know, Alex."

"What?" He snapped around and looked at her.

"He's a half-vampire."

_Oh right, he was a half-vampire, how could it be! He was so young, vampires didn't turn children! _He thought.

_No time to mull over it._

"Sixty over forty," Clive reported, moving so fast his actions were a blur.

Jenny started an IV line in Darren's arm and hooked up a bag of blood plasma.

_He was losing him_, Alex thought. The boy would die in front of him like Shaun, his son, if he didn't act fast.

_No, he couldn't let it happen._

From the position of the wound, the knife had probably hit his right kidney, and God knows what other damage had been done. The kid was bleeding out; he had only a few minutes left before his internal organs began shutting down…

Alex shoved his hands into the fresh pair of gloves Jenny held out for him. Reaching for the scalpel that was promptly slapped into his palm, he called on every ounce of skill he had.

He prayed, he cursed, and he fought time as he cut into the boy's body.

As he had suspected, the knife blade had hit his right kidney.

Hit it, _Bloody hell_; It had all but sliced the organ in half.

There was no saving the kidney, and if he didn't get it out and the blood vessel tied off in record time, there would be no saving the boy either.

"Heart beat's dropping," stated Jenny as she help spelled away the blood that kept on rushing out.

"Come on," Alex muttered under his breath.

It was a race, savage and merciless. If he made one misstep, if he hesitated, if anything was dropped or even fumbled, then he lost, and the boy lost.

It wasn't surgery as he was accustomed to doing it; it was battlefield surgery, fast and brutal; with the boy's life hanging on every split second decision and action.

While they poured all of their available blood into him, Alex fought to keep it from pouring out of him just as fast as it went in. Moment by moment, he stemmed the bleeding, searched out every severed vessel, and slowly he began to win the race.

He didn't know how long it took, he never asked, never found out. _How long_ didn't matter.

All that mattered was winning, because the alternative _was more_ than he could bear.

* * *

Author's note: Hehehehehe... ;Did you enjoy it? Don't go away, because there is more to come... *Another evil laugh to finish it off.* WaKAkAkaka... ;)

Reviewwwwwwwwwwwwwww, please!!!!!!!!!!!!! If you feel like giving it. Haha...M.M


	5. At the Hospital

Disclaimer: Seriously Not mine. Hehe... ;D But I can hope it is! HAha :) There's no crime in hoping right?

* * *

_Pain…_

The unearthly creature's face flashed across his mind, its mouth twisted in an evil grin, showing its unusual sharp teeth dripping with…_BLOOD._

Harry jerked awake, panting heavily. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead, drenching his clothes. He groaned at the sudden burst of bright light that hurt his sensitive eyes. Holding up a hand to shield his eyes, he looked around.

_Where am I_?

He was in a room; its walls were painted completely white. There was a chair beside his bed, unoccupied. And a table stood in a corner with a bundle of flowers on it.

_The hospital. _The answer struck him quite unexpectedly. _How?_

Pulling off the covers, he slipped his legs over the bed and tried to stand up.

His feet buckled under him and he sat on the ground abruptly.

_Ouch. _

With the help of the chair, he stood up, his legs wobbled under him as he tried to steady himself. He felt sore all over and his head pounded.

Harry staggered over to the door, each step seemed like torture to his weakened state.

He was about to open the door, when it suddenly opened inwards, knocking into him.

With a gasp, he lost his balance and toppled over, falling on his back.

_Ouch._

A face peeked over the door, shocked.

Harry squinted at the blur figure before him.

_Where are my glasses when I needed them? _

His impossibly bad eyesight made him feel like an old man. He did not realize that the years he had spent reading in the dark had actually taken _A BIG TOLL_ on his sight.

"Harry? Why aren't you in bed?" Professor Dumbledore gave him a concerned look, moving over to help him up.

"I…" Replied Harry uncertainly, not knowing what to say. He quietly let the professor helped him back to his bed.

"How long I've been here?" He broke the silence, eying the professor who was busy looking for something under his cloak.

"About ten hours, it's almost midday now," said Dumbledore, not looking up.

"Aha! Here are your glasses," he handed it over to Harry, smiling, his eyes twinkling.

"Thanks."

"How are you feeling?"

"Sore, I feel like I've been run over by a herd of bulls." The raven haired boy shifted his position on the bed, trying to get more comfortable.

"That's to be expected, since your unfortunate encounter with that vampaneze didn't end well," he flinched at the thought of seeing Harry's battered body. "You're lucky that Darren was there to save you in time."

"Vampaneze? Darren?" A confused look was evident on Harry's face.

_Looks like this was going to be a long talk._

The next half an hour was used by Dumbledore to recount the incident that had landed Harry in St. Mungo's hospital, including Snape's involvement. Which took Harry by surprise; it never occurred to him that the potion master could be so concerned about his well being.

Besides that, the professor also told Harry about Darren being a half-vampire, who was gifted with magic powers. Rarely were there vampire wizards, only one of those had survived through the ages, and that was Paris Skyle. Few knew who he really was besides a vampire prince.

_Ahh, the good old days… _Dumbledore remarked when he was caught up in his reminiscence.

Turns out that Dumbledore was a_ close_ friend of Paris, one of the oldest vampires ever lived! That's how he came to know so much about them.

Harry cringed at the thought of the raging vampire war between the vampanezes and the vampires.

_Wasn't the rise of Voldemort was bad enough?_

His mind had problem processing the immense amount of information that Dumbledore had just told him, it only made his headache worse.

All he wanted now was to go back to sleep. His eye lids drooped, and his head felt heavy.

Dumbledore, sensing Harry's tiredness, took his leave.

"Rest now my boy, I'll come visit you afterward," he whispered, turning off the light as he went out.

There was a soft click as the door closed behind the great wizard.

The raven haired boy didn't hear it for he was already fast asleep in his bed.

* * *

Night had fallen when Harry woke up feeling much better.

He sat up in his bed, going over what Dumbledore had told him. The hum of the air filter in the background was the only thing that broke the silence of the night.

Finally, after much thought, he came to the conclusion that he really should go and thanked his savior.

_Darren should be awake by now, vampires don't sleep during the night, right?_ His commonsense stated.

Getting up slowly, he crept to Darren's room, which was opposite his, just as Dumbledore had said.

He knocked softly on the door.

"Come in," came the reply.

Taking a deep breath, he walked into the room.

* * *

The silvery moonlight filtered through the window, drenching the place with a dark and mysterious air.

As his eyes slowly adjusted to the dark room, Harry made his way towards the bed.

"Hello, sorry to bother you this late, but I want to thank you, for saving my life," he blurted out, standing at the edge of the hospital bed.

There was no reply.

_Queer_, thought the raven haired boy, _the bed seemed to be empty._

"Hello?" His voice echoed in the dark.

Still, _nothing._

Just to make sure, he pulled off the blankets, the bed _really was_ empty.

There was a rush of wind behind him; he looked around, half expecting to see someone there.

_There wasn't._

Things just got weirder.

The room gives him the creeps; Harry was quite anxious to leave it when out of the blue something sprang out of the dark and half scared him to death.

Taking a quick step back, he caught his foot on an alien object and fell sprawled on the ground.

Someone's laughing at him as the lights came on.

Harry blinked at the figure before him. The boy was almost his age, perhaps older, with dark brown hair cropped short. He was tall, well-built and there was something about his features that made Harry think twice about his age.

"Hi, I'm Darren Shan," the boy said, smirking. He reached out a hand to help Harry off the floor.

Harry stood up, rubbing his sore back.

_What are the odds of falling on his back thrice in the past few hours?_ He grumbled under his breath.

"Sorry? What did you say?" Darren's sudden remark caught him off guard.

Harry looked up to see Darren staring at him curiously.

"Umm…Nothing." He shook his head, feeling his face heat up.

"I'm Harry by the way, I just want to thank you for saving my lif-"

"Don't mention it," Darren cut him off. He jumped onto his bed and sat crossed legged. "I'm only doing what's right."

"Okay," Harry nodded awkwardly, running his hand through his hair. "Where's Mister Crepsley?"

"He just went out to take care of something."

"Oh, I heard that you're badly injured in the fight with the vampaneze," said Harry looking at the half-vampire. _He seemed perfectly fine_, he thought.

"Nah, that's nothing to worry about, I'm a fast healer," answered Darren in a jolly tone as he motioned for Harry to sit down.

They talked for a while and Harry found that Darren was not so bad after all; he might even made a great friend.

"Looks like I'm going to your school," The half-vampire suddenly stated in a downcast tone, looking at his hands.

Harry detected the change in Darren's mood.

"Don't you like going to school?"

"It's just that it's been quite a while since I've gone to a school. And I'm not quite sure how it's going to turn out." He sighed.

"You'll fit in fine; you can hang out with us! How about you come along with me to stay at Ron's house, the Burrow for a fortnight, till school starts," suggested Harry, remembering the fact that Dumbledore had given him the green light to stay with his best friend. Ron will be thrilled.

"I think 's alright with that." A smile spread across Darren's face.

"And, where exactly is the Burrow?"

"You'll find out _soon_ enough," replied Harry, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

_It's going to be really fun._

_

* * *

_Author's note: Wakakakaka... *Evil cackle* So, what do you think? Sadly, I can't really torture the characters in this chapter! But more shall come... I'm hoping they are up to it _when it does_! (:


	6. The Burrow

Disclaimer: Enim Ton Si Ti. Haha! ;D Enim! Enim! *Another Evil Cackle* Wakakakakaka...

* * *

Darren was busy looking through his belongings in a bag had brought from the Cirque.

"I can't go with you, Darren. I'm sorry," apologized in a tight voice. He was standing at the corner of the room, away from the rays of the golden sunlight.

He looked up, surprised. "Why?"

"You had to have notice the fact that the vampanezes are getting bolder in killing people in the cities and discarding them carelessly, right?"

"Yeah, I've noticed," the half-vampire answered.

"The body counts are getting higher, and you actually got seriously injured in a fight with one of them," he paused, immersed in his thoughts. A grim look on his scarred face.

"When Dumbledore came to me, I thought that you're …" he trailed off, letting out a sigh. His shoulders slumped.

"What?" Darren asked, trying to comprehend the look on 's face. He had never seen him like this, even when during the trials. _Never_.

_Was it fear? Fear for his life?_

"Dead."

The world struck him hard, although he had guessed it before hand. It seemed _wrong _to hear it being uttered out loud, and from 's mouth.

Darren nodded in acknowledgment, shoving his hands into the pockets on his sweater. He sat down on the bed when he had finished what he was doing.

The bed creaked as he did that. Its springs straining against his weight.

"I'm going to consult the other vampire princes and offered them my help," suddenly appeared beside him.

Darren gave him a weak smile, knowing what had to do. He always knew that one day his mentor would rejoin the ranks of the vampire generals to fight the vampanezes. _Not so soon though._

gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Looks like you better go now, Harry's waiting."

"Alright." Darren stood up a little reluctantly. How he wished and hoped that he could go with instead of going to a school to learn magic, which he would gladly do so if there wasn't a war. He had his duties as a vampire prince. But Paris and Dumbledore had insisted on it. He can't do anything about it.

_Just accept it_, he muttered to himself.

opened the door for him. "Be safe, okay?"

Darren grinned. "I would say the same to you."

And with a last look at his mentor, Darren swung his bag over his shoulder and walked out of the room.

* * *

The corridor was brightly lit by the fluorescent lights and the smell of medicines hung thickly in the air. It was still in the early hours of the day, but already was a lot of people in the hospital. Darren had to quickly step out of the way when a few nurses rushed by. Once, a running doctor almost rammed into him. Darren saw that it was .

"Hello Darren, how are you?" He asked as he jogged by.

"Great!" Darren replied, swinging around to look at the doctor. But the busy doctor was out of earshot by then.

"Hey Darren! Over here!" Called out Harry when he spotted the half-vampire in the crowd.

"Hi Harry!" Darren greeted. He strolled over to the end of the hall where Harry's standing, waiting for him.

"What took you so long?" Questioned Harry.

Darren gave him a fake punch on the shoulder. "There's no need for you to know."

"How are we going to get to the Burrow?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. _Not sure how wizards travel._

"With this." Harry held out a crystal globe with a queer shaped house in it, which was the Burrow.

"It's a portkey," He explained. "It's the key to teleport, in a way." He played with the globe, throwing it around.

"When you activate it, it will take you to the place where it is assigned to," He continued.

Understanding dawned on Darren. "Wow," He breathed, awed. _That was way better than anything_.

"So, are we going right now?"

"Right! But before we do, I must warn you that the first time sometimes can be unpleasant," He said jokingly.

Taking out his wand, Harry told Darren to place his hand on the portkey. He muttered the activation code.

"What do you mean by unpl…" Before Darren could finish, he was swept away by a cold rush of magic. The world spun all around him and he felt as if he was squeezed through an invisible pipe. He forgot to breathe.

Seconds later, the pressure lifted. He fell on a lush green patch of grass with a thump.

_Omph! Oww… _He felt winded and his head was spinning. Before he could compose himself, he felt something jabbing at his rib. Darren rolled over and found that he had crushed a gnome. The pitiful creature miraculously survived it though; he stood up shrieking and threw one of his hooked shoes at Darren's face. It hit his nose and fell to the ground.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Darren tried unsuccessfully to calm the raving gnome.

The _very UNHAPPY_ creature gave Darren a good beating.

The half-vampire, still feeling the aftermath of teleporting, unable to really protect himself against the steamed up gnome. His vain attempt to dodge the gnome's flying fist earned him a few bruises.

Satisfied with his revenge, the gnome gave an undignified _hmph_ and stomped away, leaving a bruised and muddled Darren behind.

"Did you enjoy the ride?" Harry appeared beside him, smirking.

"Very unpleasant," was the short reply.

The raven haired boy burst into fits of laughter. Harry couldn't help but find it very laughable.

"Ha! Laugh all you want!" Darren threw his hands up in exasperation.

Harry was still laughing away uncontrollably when suddenly Darren threw himself at him.

Surprised at his friend's abrupt attack, Harry was thrown off his feet. Together, they rolled into a muddy pool wrestling with each other. Creatures that resided beside the pool quickly scurried away as the two giants splashed into it. Mud flew everywhere.

Grabbing a handful of mud, Darren threw it at Harry's face,"Ha! Take that!"

"Oh no you don't," laughed Harry as he dodged the incoming mud bomb. He sent a ball of mud flying back towards Darren.

_SPLAT. _

"Hey!" exclaimed Darren, he spat out the disgusting mud. _Ugh_. It tasted horrible.

Grinning, he shoved Harry into the sticky mud.

By the time when someone found them, they were completely covered in the dark brown mud.

was going to water her bluebells in her well tended garden when she heard the commotion. There was grunting, splashing and people laughing?

Darren was still in the act of strangling Harry when he noticed the third person on the scene. He froze.

"What are you two boys doing?" reprimanded them, her hands firmly on her hips.

Harry grinned sheepishly at her, "Hi, !"

She regarded him with a stern look. _Oops_.

* * *

They were marched straight back to the house.

_Squish. Squish. Squish_. Went their mud soaked shoes as they carefully tread through the porch.

The antique hanging lights on the ceiling swayed when Harry heard the pattering of feet coming down the stairs.

Ron was the first one to burst out of the door. He stood gaping at Harry and Darren.

"What in the world happen to you two?"

* * *

Author's note: Hahahaha... Mrery Cistamhrs! & A vrey Hpapy New Yaer to all of you! Ejony. Wlihe you can...Muahahahaha! I'm delirious! :D Hohoho! Hehehe! Hahaha!

PS: Sorry that some of the names had been mysteriously eaten by A MONSTER! I can't get them back, for I'll have to crawl into its very disgusting stomach..._Yuck_! I'll wait for them to come out naturally and that's after being digested by THAT MONSTER. Hope you won't mind. Haha! Wakakakakaka...


	7. Quidditch, What's that?

Disclaimer: Some things belongs to me, some things don't belong to me. There! I've said it! Haha… ;D Have fun reading it!

* * *

An hour later, Darren and Harry sat at the dining table in their fresh clothes. Ron and the others had gone back to sleep, since it was still too early to wake up, except for Mrs. Weasley, who was making breakfast in the kitchen.

They had spent a very long time meticulously picking the bits of sand out of their hair; it could have been done much faster with magic. But Mrs. Weasley had made them do it _the muggle way_, as a punishment.

Dumbledore had Harry's trunk sent to the Burrow the day before, adding a note that Darren will be coming along. He did not mention that Darren was a half-vampire though. The wise old wizard knew that it'll be better for them to tell the Weasleys themselves. Darren _did not know_ that he didn't.

"Harry, did they know that I'm…Well, you-know?" He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

Harry looked at him. "Umm…Nope."

_Yikes! How could I have forgotten about that!_ He mentally kicked himself.

"What!" Darren exclaimed, horrified at the thought if the Weasleys did not welcome vampires in their house. _Well, I'm a half-vampire. So, that should be a comforting thought._ He muttered sarcastically.

Harry gave him a nudge, snapping Darren out of his thoughts. "I have it covered, I'll tell them later, when we eat."

"Ahh…" Said the half-vampire uncertainly. "I think I'll tell them myself, it is better like that. But, thanks." He tried giving Harry a convincing smile.

The smell of fresh baked waffles and pie wafted out of the kitchen. Soon, all the family members were gathered around the table, eager to have their hands first on the food. Darren carefully studied the Weasleys, taking note of their scent and committing every last details of their being to memory, if ever the need arises to find them.

_There's Mr. Weasley, who had a jolly smile plastered across his face; Percy, the one with the curly hair, just like Mrs. Weasley; The twins of mischief, Fred and George…_

"Here comes the blueberry pie!" Announced Mrs. Weasley coming out of the kitchen.

There was a cheer, Ginny clapped her hands happily.

"Darren, where did you go before you decided to attend Hogwarts?" Ron asked; hands outstretched to get the first piece of the pie.

Mrs. Weasley slapped his hand. "Not so fast young man! We haven't said our prayers yet." She snapped.

"Sorry mom." Ron sunk back into his seat, rubbing his hand.

Fred and George sniggered.

_Okay, now's the time to tell them the truth_. Darren felt a tad nervous; he must have looked a shade paler.

He stood up quite suddenly; his knee accidentally bumped the table. _Ouch. Wrong move, no way to back out of this now, he must tell them now._

Taking a deep breath, he blurted out. "I have something very important to tell all of you."

All eyes were trained on him. Darren felt like a deer that had ran into the headlights of a car. He tried to gather himself together. _This wasn't going to be so hard right?_ He stood up straighter.

"What is it, dear?" Molly walked out of the kitchen while wiping her hands with a towel.

"I'm a half-vampire." He stated it out bluntly.

There was a sharp intake of breath.

"Am I…Hearing right?" There was a quiver in Ron's voice, he looked utterly shocked.

"Haven't you heard him Ronnie? He was a half-vampire!" Said Fred excitedly.

"That!" George exclaimed.

"Was!" His twin continued his sentence.

"So!"

"Cool!!" Fred and George finished in unison, eying Darren in admiration.

_Wow, that's not what I've expected_. Darren was taken aback by the red-headed family's response.

"Did you have fangs?"

"Did you burn under sunlight?"

"Did you live in a coffin?"

"Are you scared of holy waters?"

"Did you love creepy creatures?"

"Did you drink human blood or animal blood?"

Strings of question were being fired at him. And, Darren answered all of them truthfully. Smirking at the expression on their face when he told them he didn't have fangs, and are not afraid of holy waters or garlic.

"Garlic only gives us bad breath." He joked.

When it came to the blood issue, Ron seemed to have lost his appetite. His favorite blueberry pie laid half eaten on his plate.

Harry noticed his friend's distress. "Ron, are you alright?"

Darren was telling them about Madam Octa, the wonderful exotic spider and how he fancies them, spiders. He was going into details about the exotic spiders, how their long furry slender legs deftly clench its prey and rolling them up in their silvery strings of…

There was a loud crash, and everyone's attention was turned to where Ron's supposed to be sitting. Darren bent under the table to look.

"I think he has fainted." Harry remarked, prodding his friend on the floor.

Fred and George burst into fits of hysterical laughter. Their laugh was so contagious, that everyone couldn't help but join in; laughing till tears came into their eyes.

_What an eccentric family!_

_

* * *

  
_

Later in the afternoon…

"Checkmate!" Said Darren smugly as his knight plunged his sword into Ron's king's stone body.

The check piece crumpled into bits. "Yay! I've got you!"

"Not again!" Ron whined, looking at his fallen king.

"Face it Ron! He's a better chess player than you. He had beaten you the fourth time now!" Harry commented. He stifled a yawn. "How about we do something else?"

Ron brightened up. "Quidditch!" He shouted. "Hey, guess what? Dad's going to bring us to a Quidditch play-off next week! It's the Chudley Canons versus the Ridikulus!"

"Are you serious?"

Harry and Ron rapidly launched into a discussion about Quidditch. They had completely forgotten about Darren over the excitement.

"Whoa! Whoa!" Darren cut them off, waving his hands. "Quidditch, what's that?" He asked them, clearly confused.

Ron and Harry looked at him as if he had grown an extra head.

"You-Don't-Know?"

"Never heard of it."

"It's the greatest game ever invented in history!" Ron announced in a loud voice.

Harry laughed at his Quidditch fanatic friend. "You're absolutely right Ron!"

"Did I hear someone said Quidditch?" George poked his head over the door.

"Wanna play?" Harry directed the question at Darren.

He smiled. "Only if you teach me how."

* * *

"You can use Charlie's Comet Striker." Ron handed him a rather old broom, whose end was quite battered _or charred_, maybe from a lightning strike.

"It's almost five years old!" Added Fred in a jolly tone. "It's a lucky broom."

"Ha, ha!" Darren scrutinized the odd looking broom; the distinctive smell of burned wood was still present. He shrugged. "Sure it is."

They gathered around a clear patch of emerald turf. Not far from the Burrow, and just out of muggle's sight. Mr. Weasley had previously drawn a line on the field, casting a diverting spell that would surely take care of any muggles that would care to be lurking around. There was a dense forest to the east of where they were standing.

Harry taught Darren what he had learned during his first year at Hogwarts.

Placing his hand above the broom, Darren commanded, "Up!"

Surprisingly, the broom did not budge.

"Try again," advised Harry as he stood watching. The rest of the Weasleys had already taken off, circling above and chasing each other's tail.

The half-vampire tried again and again. Still, the broom refused to even move an inch.

Feeling very frustrated and longing to be in the air with the others, Darren actually got angry at the Comet Striker. "Oh get up you old broom!" He said irritably.

With a quick swipe, the presumably angry broom knocked Darren off his feet.

He sat on the ground, stunned. "What did he do that for?" He said indignantly.

"It means that he wants you to say 'Please'." Ginny landed beside him, trying to suppress a laugh. "Old brooms do have a temper because they are made to be so. People in the olden days, care much more about manners. And the brooms didn't like to be order around just like that."

"Oh." He narrowed his eyes at Harry.

Harry tried not to cringe under his friend's creepy glare. He shuddered slightly.

"Don't look at me like that! I didn't know that the broom had such a bad temper."

The raven haired boy hastily swung his leg over his Fire Bolt and shot into the azure sky.

"Thanks Ginny." Darren said before he took off, following after Harry.

Hovering a few feet above the air, Darren tried hard not to look down. He did not have acrophobia, luckily. But looking down from such a height did make him feel anxious. He gulped, gripping the handle of the broom tighter than necessary as if his life depended on it, _which unfortunately did_.

_Get a grip of yourself!_ He should be enjoying this! Wasn't this was what he had always wanted since he first saw a plane?

Taking a long and deep breath, Darren calmed himself before focusing all his attention on learning "The Art of Flying".

"Now, basics," using his Fire Bolt, which was a present from his late uncle, Harry demonstrated a few flying techniques.

_That's easy._ Darrenthought, admiring Harry's skills.

Out of people's expectations, Darren turned out to be a fairly quick learner. Shortly, Harry had moved on to teaching him some tricks.

_It feels great to be in the air again_. The cool wind whipped against his face as he swiftly cut through the air, doing the double spin and the plunge. Harry was moving in a speed that everything around him seemed like a blur, objects passed him in the blink of an eye. A few seconds later, he swerved the broom around and headed back toward s Darren.

He came to a stop in front of the half-vampire.

"Now's your turn," he grinned, his teeth flashing white.

The Weasley looked on, awed by Darren's agility on a broom.

Darren was currently enjoying himself. He felt _free,_ in the air.

_Time to start the game._

The rules were explained to Darren by Harry beforehand.

"It's quite simple," he started, then he dictated all the rules that Darren should know about playing Quidditch.

"There will be two groups; Ron's going to call his 'The Great Chudley Canons'!" Harry said in a voice that sounded much like the circus ringmaster, _dramatic._ "The other group is 'The Fire Strikers'. In Ron's group he fancies being the chaser, so let him be. George had booked the beater plus keeper post. So, you'll be the seeker. Are you alright with that?" He asked.

Darren nodded his head, completely contented with his role. _Seeker, quite challenging_.

At Darren's affirming nod, Harry continued on, pointing at the person when he mentioned them.

"In my group, I'm the seeker; Ginny's the chaser; Fred's the beater plus keeper. And finally, good old Percy's obviously going to be the referee."

"Alright!" Harry gave Darren a hearty slap on the back. He turned to Percy and gave him the thumbs up, signaling that they were ready.

They took their places in the air. Darren hovered beside Harry, eyes locked on the snitch in the box.

_You're not going to get away from me, little thing_. He smirked.

Percy released the bludger and the golden snitch. There was a _Whoosh _as the bludger flew past Harry, nearly hitting him on the shoulder. The snitch was quickly out of sight, to Darren's dismay.

"Let the game begin!" He blew the whistle and threw the quaffle into the air.

Ginny, being the more agile one, snatched the quaffle away before Ron could even put a finger on it. She raced at top speed towards the goal.

"Go Ginny!" Harry yelled. He surveyed the air space around him searching for the _cunning_ snitch. _Where are you Goldy?_

George stayed at the goal post, readying to face his sister. _Bother the bludger, no time for that. Here she comes._

Ginny was trying to find her brother's weak spot. George had guarded the post very expertly, not giving Ginny any chance. She zigzagged through the air, making it harder for Ron to catch up. But her determined brother was not so easily daunted by her petty trick.

George's attention was momentarily distracted by the bright glint of the sun, reflected by the snitch. He shielded his eyes with one arm.

_Aha!_ Ginny spotted a hole in George's defense. She scored. _Goal!_

"Woohoo!" Fred hooted, punching his fist into the air.

Ron clapped his hands. "I'm going to get you next time sis!"

"Come and get me if you can!" She taunted him. With a laugh, she flew off.

The game continued in a very fast pace. Ginny had managed to score a few more goals before Ron could get back at her. Using a trick by one of his favorite Chudley Canons' chaser, Ron snatched the quaffle away from Ginny.

_She didn't even know what hit her_, Ron thought, cradling the quaffle under one of his arms.

In the meantime, Darren had darted off, chasing after the snitch. He spotted it earlier when the sun glinted off its golden surface. The said snitch had taken him on an elusive chase through the dense forest.

Harry realized that Darren had seen the snitch, gone after him. He leaned on his Fire Bolt to reduce the air friction so he could go faster. Promptly, he was beside Darren, both going for the snitch.

Weaving through the forest at high speed was definitely _not a good idea_.

Darren almost lost his head to one of the thick tree branches; the thin twigs scratched his skin. Nevertheless, he kept his eyes on the snitch.

Harry could not have _fared_ _better_.

A horror struck squirrel fell out of nowhere and landed on his head. The frightened creature grabbed at his face trying hard not to fall off, hanging on for dear life. Never did he know that Harry was being blinded by his scrambling fingers!

_Was it trying to poke me blind!_ Harry batted at the squirrel with one of his hands.

Finally, grabbing the squirrel by the scruff of his neck, Harry dropped him into a tree hole.

_Hope there's nothing in there that will eat him._ He thought. _God Speed squirrel!_

The snitch burst out of the forest, followed by two disheveled boys on flying brooms.

_You're mine now!_ Darren almost got the snitch. He reached out…

Harry intercepted him, seizing the snitch in a sweeping move before the half-vampire could close his hand around it.

_No!!!! _Darren internally screamed. He stopped in midflight, staring after the triumphant Harry.

The game had ended.

The Fire Strikers had won!

Percy blew the whistle.

Harry flew back towards Darren. "You're a natural flyer! Great move, since it's your first game!" He congratulated Darren, shaking his hand.

"But you won," Darren said, a bit crestfallen. He had _almost_ got it.

Harry beamed at him. "Come on, we'll play again!"

"Okay."

Harry went off to find Percy, who was taking his referee break. He was sitting on a small chair reading a book about Magical Creatures and sipping on a cup of sweet tea.

Harry was just a few meters away from Darren when disaster struck.

"Darren! Watch out!" Ginny's voice rang out, pointing towards a bludger that was heading straight towards the half-vampire.

Unable to react to the threat in time, Darren received the bludger full force on the back of his head.

Instantly, his world went black.

* * *

Author's note: It's the season to be jolly, Falalalala, lalalala… Wakakakakakaka! This! Is my diabolical laugh. XD


	8. Life is Good

Disclaimer: To be mine, it must first be mine. But it wasn't mine in the first place. So, it wasn't mine. Haha… ;D

* * *

Harry looked around at the sound of Ginny's alarmed call.

Time seemed to slow down as he helplessly watched the flying bludger head towards his friend. There was a thud as the bludger made impact with Darren's head.

The half-vampire pitched forward on his broom, a dazed expression on his face, and fell…To his doom.

They were about 16 stories high up, at this height; Darren couldn't possibly survive the 160 feet fall. If he fall head first, he would instantly be killed on impact with the ground. Harry snapped into action, he zoomed towards his friend, reaching for his flailing arm.

Everything happened so fast, and in such a short space of time, that everyone could only stood transfixed on the ground.

"Oh Merlin," Ron whispered as he watched the scene unfurled before him.

At the last possible moment, Harry caught Darren's arm. The sudden strain of Darren's weight almost pulled him off his broom. Cold sweat broke out all over him. He clutched tightly at his broom, willing himself not to let go.

The raven haired boy clenched his teeth when his arm muscles protested at the pull of the heavy load.

_Just a few more meters to go_. Harry could feel Darren's arm slipping in his grip.

He quickly lowered the half-vampire onto the ground. Harry knelt down beside his injured friend, one hand rubbing at his sore arm.

Ginny rushed over, a concerned look on her face. "Is he okay?"

"I think so," Harry answered, checking Darren's head. "It's just a bump on the head, he'll come over soon."

* * *

"Darren?"

_Someone's calling his name_, Darren thought absentmindedly. His head was swimming and pounding as if someone was hitting the inside of his head with a jackhammer. He groaned.

"He's stirring!" Someone squealed.

Darren felt something cool at the back of his head. _That's better_, he mumbled as relief spread over him. The unbearable headache had turned into a dull throb, but the impenetrable darkness still weighed him down.

A few minutes had passed before he tried opening his eyes.

He was greeted by six pairs of worried eyes staring at him.

"Am I dead?" he croaked, his parched throat made it hard for him to speak.

Silence greeted his question.

_I take that as a no, because death would be much noisier than this, in my opinion_.

Somebody held a glass of water to his mouth, helping him to sit up. He gulped it down thirstily.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked, looking at the purple bruise that stretched from Darren's neck into his hair. "You just fell from 48 meters high."

"Glad I didn't break my neck or any bones!" he said sarcastically.

"I have thick skull you see," he rapped at his head with his knuckles, trying to make them see the point, which they had seen, _very clearly_.

"Harry saved your life," Ron said, nodding towards Harry.

"Thanks!"

"That's for saving my life from that vampaneze," The raven haired boy added quickly.

No sooner had the words came out of his mouth, that Harry realized his mistake. No one at the Burrow knew what exactly happened except him and Darren.

Everyone, not counting Darren, stared at him with a questioning look.

"What actually happened between you two?"Ron asked, raising an eyebrow_. Ha! There's something Harry's hiding from them. Besides that, he hadn't told them how he came to have met Darren._

"I don't think that it's necessary to tell you, it wasn't a big deal." Harry tried to avoid telling them the entire truth. It was embarrassing enough not being careful and getting beat up by Dudley and his cronies.

He looked at Darren for help. The half-vampire just shrugged his shoulders.

"I want to know _absolutely everything_." Ron insisted, locking his gaze with Harry.

_Oh well, why not tell them now, sooner or later, the truth is going to come out._

Feeling a bit uneasy about how his friends are going to react to his sudden revelation of his near death experience, Harry told them the whole truth.

Darren helped to fill in a few details on the way, which included the part where the vampaneze was finally finished off by a speeding truck.

Ron's expression changed from shocked to awe as he listened intently to everything that Harry's saying.

"How could you've not told us about this?" He exclaimed when Harry had finished. "This is serious!"

Harry averted his best friend's gaze; he stared at a brown patch of grass, not knowing how to answer his friend.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. The raven haired boy looked up; his intense green eyes met a pair of dark brown eyes, Ginny's eyes.

"You're not alone Harry, we're always there for you okay?" She said, giving him a comforting smile.

He nodded, letting out a sigh.

All of them knew that Harry had a tough time last year, and what wouldn't they give to keep their friend from being hurt again.

He had always put up a strong mask when being with them. Never had he once let his own troubles worried his friends. To people who don't really knew him, he was a confident yet happy person. But never did they knew that deep inside, he's heart was so fragile that even one seemingly insignificant blow, lacerations will appear. Sirius's departure still affects the raven haired boy in a way he wouldn't show and everyone was worried about him.

"Shall we play another round of Quidditch? " Darren broke the sudden gloomy silence. He stood up and brushed his clothes.

"Yeah!" Fred and George swiftly agreed with Darren, they really need to get back to laughing after all this.

A grin broke across Harry's face. "Alright! Come on Ron!" He swung a hand over his best friend's shoulder.

He gave Ginny a reassuring smile as they took to the air again.

* * *

The following days passed like a blur, full of laughter and definitely, pranks. The Weasley twins just couldn't survive one day without playing a prank on someone.

Darren was having the time of his life there. He really hadn't thought beforehand that he could still have normal friends. _Not perfectly normal, but good, in a sense._

Hermione, the bushy haired best friend of Harry and Ron joined them on the fourth day of their stay at the Burrow. She had taken to herself the task of preparing Darren for Hogwarts. Darren couldn't possibly turn down her generous offer to teach him and so he just goes with it, even though he hadn't got his wand. They were planning to go to Hogsmeade on the fifth day before school starts to get their school supplies. Therefore Hermione had resorted to teaching the half-vampire theories and The History of Magic.

"Don't torture him Mione!" Ron begged in Darren's stead. Hermione's been lecturing him on the theories of "The Defense against the Dark Arts" for three straight hours now.

"I'm not!" Hermione retorted, flashing him a glare. "Did I Darren?" She asked sweetly.

"It's fine Ron. I'm enjoying every moment of this!" The half-vampire responded, trying to keep a straight face. Ron's expression was very funny. He's trying to give Hermione the puppy eyes' look.

_His attempt failed miserably, I see._

"Are you sure?" He looked surprised. _He didn't want to take his chance and fled the scene when Hermione's being distracted by me? The window behind him was wide open!_

"See?" Hermione crossed her hands and stood before Ron. Her glare was burning holes on him.

"Then I'll better leave you to your lessons," he stood up quickly from his kneeling position. Ron smiled sheepishly at Hermione before bounding for the door to find the others. Harry was with Fred and George in the garden, doing a fierce battle with the gnomes, _the angry, unmerciful gnomes_.

They were winning of course. The alternative was something they wouldn't _want to know_.

Fred grabbed a gnome by one of his foot. The red faced gnome struggled against his captor's hold.

"Put ME DOWN!" He squeaked, amplifying each word. "Or I'll…"

"You'll what?" Fred laughed at the small being, swinging it from side to side.

"You'll regret it!" He sneered at Fred, blowing a raspberry.

"Haha! You're a funny one! Bon Voyage!" He flung the gnome into the distance.

"I'll be back!" Fred vaguely heard the gnome squeaked as he disappeared into the horizon.

He just shrugged it off. _No need to fear a little gnome_.

* * *

Luck was on their side, they emerged victorious from the battle, apart from a few injuries.

Harry was perfectly unharmed, which was good, since he treated the gnomes more gently than Ron, Fred and George. Each of them suffered a few bites from _various fuming gnomes_

"They didn't have rabies, do they?" George asked aloud, staring at a bite on his leg. It was a deep bite, and it felt_ itchy_. Somehow a rather intelligent one had found his way up his trouser. _Thank god,_ it didn't do much damage.

"They don't!" Fred answered, sucking at the open bite wound on his three fingers.

Harry scrutinized the ugly wound on George's leg. "He really had sharp teeth, by the look of it," He said as he applied some healing salve on the wound.

George flinched at the sudden coolness on his leg.

"_Razor sharp_ teeth, you should say," Ron commented, looking over Harry's shoulder. "What a bad looking wound."

"Do you expect it to be good looking?" George joked, throwing a bundle of cotton wool at Ron.

Ron dodged the object, laughing.

Right at that moment, Darren walked in.

Missing its target, the bundle of cotton _found_ someone else.

"Hey I'm just taking a break. Do you guys want…" SMACK! He stopped in midsentence as the thing hit his face.

"What's that?" The half-vampire bent down to pick it up from the ground.

"Oops." George looked away, hoping that Darren didn't see who did it.

"Who threw it?" Darren mouthed the words at Ron.

Smiling broadly, Ron pointed at George.

"George." The half-vampire drawled, holding the bundle of cotton wool in his hand.

He turned around. "Yeah?" He said innocently as if he hadn't done anything wrong.

"Don't move."

Before George's mind could process the command, he felt something connected with his face.

"HahaHAHA!" Darren high-fived Ron.

"Good aim Darren!" Harry remarked, and an idea struck him. "Let's go play some pranks on someone, shall we?"

"We shall! George! How about we try out our new invention on Mr. Grumpy down the road?" Fred suggested, sharing a mischievous grin with his twin brother.

"Right! That's what I'm thinking." He jumped down from the table he's sitting on, before continuing. "He'll be shocked!"

_This day just couldn't get any better, _thought Darren as he followed them outside.

_But destiny had another plan for him and it will all soon be revealed…_

_

* * *

_

Author's note: Muahahahaha…I'm having a lot of fun writing this! & if you had time, perhaps you can check out Witty Kitty01's "A New Order". It's very funny and I'm sure you'll enjoy it! :D Any comments? Just shoot! I'm willing to hear anything from anyone! Have a WoNdErFuL New Year!! XD

_Don't go away…_


	9. Addonexus, The Bringer of Death

Disclaimer: I solemnly swear that I was up to no good…Wakakakakakak! ;D

* * *

Darren woke up with a start, feeling hot and sticky. His skin was clammy with sweat and his dark brown hair was matted. A wave of dizziness hit him when he opened his eyes, he felt nauseated. Swiftly, he squeezed his eyes tightly shut.

_Why am I feeling so feverish? Am I coming down with some sickness?_ Questions flooded his mind as he tried to comprehend what was happening to him. He had never felt _so weak_.

He swallowed, pushing back the bile that was rising in his throat.

_The Purge… No, it couldn't be. Another few more years, Mr. Crepsley had said. Then, what was it?_

The half-vampire searched his mind for an answer, but it only made the headache worse. Soon, his head was pounding so hard that he stopped thinking altogether. He sat up in his bed, feeling the abnormal pain that had suddenly flared up all over his body.

It was still in the early hours of the day, and dawn was not far away. Darren could hear the steady rhythmic breathing of the occupants in the house, caught up in their own dreams. The clock downstairs was constantly ticking away, "Tick, tock, tick, tock…" it went.

He wiped the cold sweat on his forehead with the back of his hand and flinched as he felt the hot skin underneath, _he was burning up_…

_He needed to get out of the room._ Suddenly, it had become too hot and stuffy for him to bear. The heat lingered in the air, generated from the sleeping forms.

_I need to go get some air_, he thought, pulling off the blanket. The world spun around him when his foot touched the floor boards, he swayed. Darren's hand shot out and grabbed at his bedside table, steadying himself. The clock tipped over and he caught it before the object could hit the floor and wake everyone up.

Someone stirred. Darren looked over his shoulder at Ron's bed, half expecting him to wake up.

But, he didn't.

The half-vampire released the breath he did not know he was holding. He quickly got dressed in his dark brown shirt and trousers. Everything he did seemed to be taking a lot of effort, his hands shook.

_What's happening to me?_

Quietly, Darren opened a drawer and took out four vials of human blood that Dumbledore had supplied him. He did not know where it came from and he wouldn't want to know. It had suddenly occurred to him that maybe some human blood will give him back some strength or even cured whatever sickness he had.

Taking a deep breath, he downed the vial in one go. He clamped his mouth shut when he felt that he was going to throw it all up again.

_Ugh_. He still didn't like the taste of the steely liquid.

Darren closed his eyes, feeling some strength returned to him, before he drank another vial. He dropped the empty vials back into the lower drawer and pocketed the remaining two vials, _he might need it later._

He felt much better afterwards. The pounding headache and the fiery pain had receded. All that was left was the constant throb on his side. With much dread, Darren realized it was the place where the vampaneze had stabbed him. He didn't notice it beforehand because he was distracted by the pain that had spread all over his body.

_An infection?_ The thought crossed his mind. _How? _Last time he had examined it; there was only a faint line of pink scar. The more he thought about it, the worse he felt. Darren could feel the headache coming back.

He silently tiptoed over to the window and slipped out. He carefully slid down the side of the house and dropped to the ground, landing on the balls of his feet. He crouched down, absorbing the force.

A moment later, he straightened himself, stretching his joints. Darren could hardly feel any discomfort now, _perhaps the blood was working_. He took off, heading towards the woods.

But his relief was short lived, before he reached his destination, an abrupt excruciating pain flared up within him. The half-vampire collapsed in the tall weeds on the edge of the forest, groaning.

_The pain was so unbearable…_

Something warm and sticky trickled down his face; he touched the liquid with his trembling fingers.

Darren held out his hand under the faint moonlight.

_Blood…_

Then his world tilted. He could feel his own breath coming in short gasps, he couldn't breathe properly; _something was crushing his lungs_.

"_Help…_" He rasped to the empty, cold space, before darkness claimed him.

* * *

A drizzle had started to fall as soon as the sun came up.

Harry was the first to get up. He threw his pillow at Ron. "Wake up Ron!"

"Five more minutes," His red-headed friend mumbled, burrowing himself under the covers.

"You're not going to sleep through the morning!" He said, taking a grip of Ron's orange blanket. _Almost everything _of his was orange! Ron was quite obsessed about that particular color, since that's the color of his favorite Quidditch team, The Chudley Cannons!

With a quick pull, Harry removed Ron's blanket, leaving him _blanketless_.

His red-headed friend curled up in his bed, hugging his pillow.

"You can't force me to wake up Harry! I have my own rights to sleep!" He retorted, peeking a look at his friend at the edge of his bed. "You can't make me and you know it."

The door suddenly bang opened and Hermione rushed in.

"Come on you guys! Breakfast's ready!" She announced, moving over to Ron's bed. She pulled at his pillow. "Get up sleepy head!"

"No!" Ron responded, tugging the pillow back.

"Argh!" Hermione leaned back, pulling at the pillow with all her might.

Soon, they'd launched into a tug-of-war. Hermione succeeded in waking up Ron. He knelt on his bed, trying hard to keep his pillow from falling into her hands.

Harry watched on in amusement. _Poor pillow_.

As expected, the pillow was torn apart with a ripping sound, feathers burst into the air. Hermione, surprised, fell back onto Darren's empty bed, laughing.

The snowy white feathers slowly floated down, she blew at them, giggling.

Ron lost his balance and fell off his bed. He hit the ground with a thud. _Oww!_

He stood up rubbing at his head. His tangled hair sticking out at every direction.

"Are you AWAKE?" Hermione looked at him with her dark eyes, which seemed to be laughing at him.

Ron pulled a face at her; Hermione replied the gesture with a roll of her eyes.

"Hey, where's Darren?" Harry asked, noticing the empty bed.

"He's not downstairs, maybe he's outside. But I haven't seen him actually," came the reply.

A frown appeared on Harry's brow. _Where's he?_

As if on cue, there was a slam of the door closing downstairs.

Harry rushed out of the room, followed by a bleary eyed Ron and Hermione, who was covered in feathers.

Darren was half way up the stairs, his clothes were soaked through. Waters dripped onto the floor with each step he took. He laboriously navigated his way up the steps, keeping his head down. It was evident that it took him a lot of effort to move, he was panting heavily as if he had just ran.

"Darren, are you alright?" Harry asked in a concerned voice.

The half-vampire looked up with a dazed expression. His blood-shot eyes and inhuman pale complexion made him look like an inferi, Voldemort's undead. Crimson red blood trickled out of his nose.

"_What?_" He said weakly, swaying precariously on the step. Then, without warning, he toppled backwards.

Harry stumbled forward, grabbing for Darren's hand. But he was just out of reach. The half-vampire tried to grasp onto the banister, but his hand slipped on the smooth wood.

Everyone watched helplessly as he tumbled down the flight of steps before coming to a stop in a sprawling heap on the landing.

He didn't move.

"Darren!"

* * *

The half-vampire slowly cracked open his eyes, he blinked a few times, clearing his vision. The smell of medicine hung thickly in the air.

_The hospital…_He mentally noted and everything that had happen in the past few hours came rushing back to him. _Pain…The fall…_

He moved his arms. Now, he felt nothing. _No pain…_

"I've given you painkillers." A voice sounded beside him.

Darren recognized the voice.

He turned around with a start, and saw the friendly doctor sitting on a chair beside him.

"What's wrong with me?" He asked, his voice barely a whisper, fearing the answer.

Dr. Chase placed a hand on his shoulder. "Darren, be calm, okay?" There was a tinge of sadness in the doctor's usual happy tone.

He took a deep breath. "Tell me." He locked his gaze with the doctor.

There was a wearied expression on Dr. Chase's handsome features. He fidgeted slightly in his seat before answering.

"You are going to _die_."

* * *

Author's note: Muahahahahahh! ;D


	10. Untold Secrets

Disclaimer: Wished, Hoped & Dreamed it was mine, and it was mine, _in a way_. Wakakakaka ;D _3nj0y, if you still can..._

* * *

Darren felt his world came crashing down around him; he stared motionlessly at the empty space before him.

_You're going to die…_ Dr. Chase's words echoed hauntingly in his head.

"No," he breathed, stunned. _He_ _couldn't die, not now_.

_How many times had he escaped from the evil clutches of death? Countless! He couldn't just die._

"There must be a mistake!" He said desperately, hoping against hope that the doctor had made an error. The thought of him actually dying had not even registered in his mind. But, his hope was quickly diminished.

Dr. Chase shook his head sadly. He really wished that he did. But after a few tests, the truth was inescapable. _The boy's fate was sealed, he will die_.

"You've been poisoned with _Addonexus_, one of the deadliest poison ever existed. There's no antidote… The vampaneze's dagger may have been laced with it. It's impossible to detect and will only surface in your blood stream once it had latched onto your vital organs and started corrupting them _slowly_…" The doctor's voice seemed _so distant_.

Darren was locked away in his own thoughts. _His life was never his to decide_.

When he looked back, the majority of things that had occurred in his life were because of someone else.

_His parents' plans_ for him in his previous life… _Becoming a half-vampire_… And _now this_.

_Dying_ was never one of his plans.

And it did not happen by chance.

It was fate.

_Destiny._

How he wished that it had never existed.

Darren could feel himself slowly falling into the bottomless pit of despair. _Snap out of it! You aren't dead yet._

"How long do I have?" He asked in a steady voice. He could not give up, _there must be a way_.

"Approximately 2 years if you're lucky," Dr. Chase answered, he felt his heart was being forcefully wrenched out of him when he took in the pained expression on the youth's face.

They had grown close since Darren's last stay at the hospital, and a sudden need to protect the young half-vampire from harm overcame him.

"Darren, I'm not going to let this happen to you okay?" He promised without a second thought.

_Whatever it takes, I can't let him die_.

The half-vampire placed a hand on the doctor's shoulder.

"Thanks, my friend," he said, a determined look on his face. "Can you promise me one thing?"

"Yes."

"_Don't tell them_."

Darren's wish surprised the doctor. _How could he not tell them! His life was in jeopardy_.

"What?" was taken aback. "You must be joking!" He exclaimed.

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Darren replied, flinging his arms in the air. "I'm serious. I don't want them to worry." _He rather had them in the dark than having them treat him like he is made of glass, and he wouldn't relish the moment when they find out about the truth… Imagine what Mr. Crepsley would do to him._

Suddenly, there was a bright purple flash beside Darren's bed. The half-vampire was momentarily blinded, he quickly shield his eyes from the unnatural light. As the purplish light slowly faded, a short and stout man appeared, clapping his hands.

"What a _poignant_ scene," he drawled, making a sad face and slightly tilting his head to a side.

Darren's eyes wide in disbelief when he recognized the uninvited guest. It was none other than _Mr. Tiny._

He turned to his side and found that the doctor was frozen in time, sitting like a statue beside him.

"What do you want?" He questioned the intruder, the words coming out harsher than he intended.

"Is that how you treat a guest?" Mr. Tiny said in a mocking tone, peering at him through his purple round glasses.

Darren tried to get up from the bed, when a wave of dizziness hit him. He slumped back, shaking his head and trying to clear his vision. Everything was spinning uncontrollably around him. He groaned, cradling his head in his hands.

"Ah! Stay where you are," Mr. Tiny raised his stick and pointed it at the half-vampire. With a pudgy hand, he adjusted his old fashioned glasses and sat down comfortably on a sofa which had seemingly appeared out of thin air.

"I'm here to inform you of a prophecy," he stated his motive clearly, keeping an eye on the boy. _He is perfectly harmless, no need to be so wind up._

Darren looked up at the mention of a prophecy. Sometime before, he had heard about one. But no one really told him the whole content.

Mr. Tiny let out a chuckle, "It seems that I've captured your attention, curious _aren't you_?"

Darren remained silent.

Sensing the boy's impatience, he cleared his throat and continued, "Through_ Fire_, _Anger_ and _Hate_, a Vampaneze Lord shall rise. He, who shall rule over terror, death and destruction; A friend or foe, _only one_ will triumph over him. _Alas_…" He trailed off, leaving the words hanging in the air.

"What's the next part?" Darren asked a bit annoyed. The splitting headache had his temper on a short fuse.

"That's for you find out yourself. You'll know, _soon_. And, you have _a vital role_ to play in this." A sly smile spread across the man's face. He stood up, and adjusted his dark coat. "I better get going, so many things to do, and _so little time_. Send my best regards to Mr. Crepsley when you next see him. Toodle-oo!"

With a _poof_, Desmond Tiny disappeared along with his sofa. Leaving Darren staring at the spot where he stood a few seconds ago. His words swirled in Darren's mind, _A Vampaneze Lord shall rise… Could it be Steve?_

"Darren, are you alright?" The half-vampire snapped out of his thoughts. The doctor was regarding him with a worried look.

"I'm fine," he blurted out. _Was it a dream? Or Mr. Tiny actually came?_

"Are you sure you want to keep this from them?" Dr. Chase couldn't believe he was doing this.

Without hesitation, Darren answered, "Yes."

_It's better like this._

_

* * *

_Author's note: Bwahahahahaha ;D Laughter's the best medicine!_ I wonder it could cure Darren...Hahaha (:  
_


	11. Nowhere To Run

Disclaimer : Not completely mine ;9

* * *

"There are four phases that you have to go through before death comes knocking at your door," Dr. Marcus Stravosky said with a heavy Russian accent, he was an old friend of Dr. Chase , who specializes in poison treatment, with a weird sense of humor. He had apparated straightaway to St. Mungo when Dr. Chase told him Darren's case, it had been quite a while since someone had been poisoned with Addonexus, which makes this case all the more interesting when the subject is a half-vampire…

Darren studied the doctor curiously; he was almost bald, with only two tuffs of silvery gray hair sticking on the side of his head. The top of his head was completely hairless, which Darren doubt it would not shine like a mirror when polished. Mr. Stravosky had on a pair of thick framed glasses, which magnified his eyes to the extent that he looked like a goldfish, _a bald goldfish_.

"Is that supposed to be funny?" The half-vampire asked, an eyebrow raised, his arms folded in front of his chest.

The Russian poison doctor nodded, grinning. Funny that his teeth did not look his age, it was pearly white and arranged perfectly, not crooked, no holes.

_Definitely fake_, Darren concluded.

"Why am I not laughing?" Darren stated. A serious expression was obvious on his face.

"Because you have partial facial paralysis?" replied the Russian, before bursting into fits of rasping laughter, which sounded more like someone choking.

Dr. Chase leaned in towards Darren. "Don't mind him that much, he's a bit not right in the head you see," he whispered, gesturing towards the Russian.

"I don't have a hard time believing you." Darren muttered.

_Maybe the constant exposure to various poisons that got him into this state._

Dr. Stravosky sat on the chair gasping. "Sorry…Can't… Help it." He pulled out a checkered handkerchief and dabbed at the droplets of sweat on his forehead.

It was a moment later, when he sat up straight in the chair and cleared his throat.

"As I was saying, this poison will surely kill you, slowly and painfully unless we find a cure. And God help us to find what we were desperately searching for in the past thousand years." A look of sadness flickered across his wizened face.

The half-vampire did not say anything but pulled his gaze away from the doctor. He looked at his own hands, resting in his lap. He closed his eyes again, scrunching them tightly before his hands lifted to rub over his face. A shaky sigh escaped him.

_Have this world ever been fair to me?_

The Russian paced the room, deep in thought, a hand stroking an imaginary beard on his chin.

"There's a potion that can spare you from the tortures of the poison. Alas, there is a terrible risk… You must remember to take it every time in the space of twelve hours. The consequence can be dire for you if you didn't."

"What's the risk?" Dr. Chase voiced his question, taking a stride towards his friend.

"I need to have a word with you, in private." Stravosky opened the door and motioned the doctor to step outside. He shot Darren a glance before closing the door behind him.

Darren stayed in the bed.

_Well, I can hear pretty well where I was. I was after all part vampire._

His highly sensitive ears quickly picked up the conversation that was happening behind the closed door.

"He could die, because the potion works to delay the effects of the poison, it builds up eventually. If he ever forgets to take the potion, his body will go into shock, and…" He trailed off.

"He'll have to make his own choice. I can't keep on giving him painkillers, it'll damage his systems." Dr. Chase's voice protested.

"Yes, but the potion will also leave him numb and cloud his consciousness for an hour. He'll be vulnerable to any attacks."

"We can keep a close watch on him."

"Alex, I don't think it's a very good idea. The risk is too great…It's silly of me to even suggest it in the first place."

"No. I need to know more about the potion, before we decide on anything."

There was a paused.

"As you already know, I've been working on this for the past few decades now. The greatest breakthrough I ever had was that the sap from the Tree of Life inhibits the destructive powers of the poison. I'd only made that discovery last month."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"I wanted to confirm the effectiveness of the potion beforehand; it was the logical thing to do. Anyways, I was planning to tell you today before you call me about the boy."

"Oh, that explains why you suddenly want to meet me today at the lab. What did you put besides that?"

"The roots from the Tree of Death. You see, these two forces balanced each other out, which makes the potion so powerful. I have tried it on my elder patients, it works, but not to my expectations, the side-effects are what I got from a 'human' patient. I'm not exactly sure how the half-vampire will react to it. We're treading on uncharted territory my friend."

"We've got to try…"

There was silence.

"So we shall, if the boy agrees."

The door swung open.

There was a determined look on Darren's face.

"I want to try the potion."

_I'm still dying, why not?_

* * *

"Come on! Squinchweed fever? I'd got it last year, it's horrible really. Don't know how you came to contract it though. I thought there's a pretty slim chance that a vampire could get it. You guys had a better immune system!" Ron said as he pushed open the door into Bows and Arrows.

"I'm only a half-vampire you know." Darren answered, busy admiring the shops scattered around Diagon Alley. This was the first time he had actually seen the world the wizards live in.

_They are quite old fashioned it seems_, he mentally noted.

His eyes slowly sweep the busy alley before turning his head and followed Ron and Harry inside to get a drink. Hermione and Ginny had gone to the bookstore, they will join them afterwards.

"Pumpkin juice eh? I really do wonder why it was so famous here," the half-vampire said, eyeing the juice with a critical eye.

"You'll understand once you've tried it," Harry grinned and he took a sip from the tall glass jug.

The place was packed with people, since it was Saturday. Sounds echoed around and the smell of freshly baked meat pie was in the air.

"Please excuse me, I'm going to the washroom," said Harry. He jumped down from the tall stool and walked to the back of the bar, leaving Ron chattering away about Quidditch with Darren.

"You've should have seen him score that goal!" Ron exclaimed, enthusiastically describing the game Darren had missed.

The raven haired boy was momentarily distracted by a picture on the side of the bar and he wasn't looking where he was going. He accidentally bumped into a cloaked figure.

"Sorry," he mumbled, without looking up and kept walking.

"_I killed Sirius Black_," came a low voice.

Harry stopped dead in his tracks. He would recognize that voice anywhere.

He snapped around just in time to catch a glimpse of the cloak figure disappearing out of the side door.

_Bellatrix._

His emotional dam collapsed, the anger that he was suppressing all along, burst out. _Revenge._

He bolted after her, not caring to stop and consider the possibility that it could be a trap. He wanted to make sure that she would never take another breath on the face of this earth, after what she had done.

_Sirius._

He raced through the alleyway, jumping over boxes and wheelbarrows, not wanting to lose his quarry. Anger clouded his sense of reasoning.

_What's he going to do when he catches her?_

The cloaked figure moved swiftly, rounding a few bends and unknowingly Harry followed her into Knockturn Alley.

_Straight into the crocodile's mouth._

Turning into a dark alley, the raven haired boy came face to face with the murderer of his godfather.

And she had a wand pointed at his heart.

"Tisk, tisk, now the savior of the wizarding world need someone to save him, how ironic." She taunted him, signaling for the rest of the Death Eaters to come out of their hiding place.

Harry quickly scanned his surroundings, seven Death Eaters, a deserted area, no one to hear him scream, no exit, no way to run, a wand pointed at his heart.

Only weapon, a wand.

_What have I gotten myself into?_

His hand slowly moved to his back pocket.

"You're not thinking of using it are you?" Bellatrix jabbed her wand at him, it dug into his ribs.

_Trapped._

_Like a dragonfly on a spider web. _

_Emotions versus logical reasoning, that's my fatal mistake._

_

* * *

BWAHAHAHAHA...  
_


	12. Darkness

Disclaimer: Really hope it was mine.

Thanks for the reviews! It really means a lot to me.

witty kitty01: Behold!...

The Flame in All of Us: Evil I am...Got to live up to my name. Bwahahahaha!

* * *

"Hey, where's Harry going?" Darren said when he saw the raven haired boy rushed out of the side door.

Ron stopped in midsentence and turned around, "Where?"

Darren stood up before he could say anything more and went after Harry.

_There's something wrong._

"Wait! Darren!"

They came out into the alleyway.

Harry was nowhere to be seen.

"Are you sure you've seen the right person?" Ron asked as he pushed open the side door to see if Harry had come back.

"How could I not trust my eye?" Replied Darren a bit annoyed.

He sniffed the air and caught Harry's scent albeit with some difficulty. It was a miracle he could even tracked his scent in the midst of the strong smell from the sewer.

It was _faint_. He would have to move fast.

"Come on!" He waved a hand, beckoning Ron to follow him.

_Please be alright._

The half-vampire broke into a jog, following the trail. He slowed down every now and then when the overwhelming odor of the surroundings covered the scent.

But it was there _still._

Ron was having a pretty hard time trying to keep up.

"Blimey! Can't you slow down a bit?" He leaned against a wall, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.

"Shush!" Darren silenced him with his finger.

He heard something.

"What's it?" Ron whispered, his eyes darting around, fearing something might jumped out from the dark corners.

"Stay where you are," said Darren to Ron, who looked a bit scared.

He climbed up the 20 feet wall that separate the alley they were in from the next. Luckily, the top of the wall was a few inches wide, enough for him to lay down flat on it.

He peeked over the edge, careful not to make any sound.

There were voices down there, cloaked figures, moving around like the shadows. He noticed the unnerving difference in the atmosphere on the other side of the wall.

_A dark presence, Knockturn Alley_.

And then he spotted…Harry.

There he was, surrounded by _Death Eaters._

_Voldemort's man._

He had got to act fast. Time was working against him, _again._

Darren dropped down from the wall, landing beside Ron.

"Please tell me something good," said his red-headed friend, eyes fixed on him.

The half-vampire clutched his shoulder with both hands. "Listen Ron…" He quickly filled him in on what he saw on the other side and what they are going to do.

* * *

"Ready?" Darren pulled out his double edge extendable blade from his back.

Ron's eyes widen when he saw the weapon. He nodded, holding out his wand in front of him.

_This is suicidal._

Darren scaled the wall and gave the signal.

_Harry was standing quite a distance away, he would be alright. I hope so._

"BOMBARDA!"

The wall exploded.

Blocks of stone collided with a few Death Eaters, knocking them out.

Darren jumped down, using the dust as cover.

_Three down, four to go._

It seems that the Death Eaters were not expecting someone to launch an attack on them. They were stunned by the explosion, but quickly recovered and fired back a few curses.

The dust was so thick that they were unable to see what they were aiming at. The blind spells mostly hit the wall. Ron was hiding behind it. He crouched at the foot of the wall, clutching his wand so tight as if his life depended on it, which it did, _in a way_.

Harry took his chance when they were distracted and disarmed the Death Eater closest to him. He got back his wand from him and fired a few stunning spells at the rest of the Death Eaters.

Bellatrix Lestrange easily deflected his spell and came after him.

_Based on his dueling skills, should he stand and fight or run?_

_She had years of experience…Torturing…Finishing off people…_

_No time, just…RUN_.

He bolted, running as fast as his feet can carry him. He was careful not to run in a straight line, so that he wouldn't be an easy target.

Darren saw Harry running away and pursued by a cloaked figure.

_No…_

He was held up by a Death Eater, who kept on firing spells after spells at him. He ducked and deflected it with his blade.

"Aren't we having fun?" The Death Eater taunted him, sending a bone breaking spell followed by a cutting spell towards him.

The half-vampire dodged the first incoming spell but his leg caught on a block of stone and he tripped. A searing pain flared up, the spell had cut a gash on his neck. Fortunately, it did not hit his carotid artery.

"_Ooh,_ that's a nasty cut. Do you want to take a break?" The man burst into a roaring laughter.

Darren gritted his teeth, breathing hard.

_Time to end this._

Moving swiftly, he slammed the hilt of the blade at the man's face, knocking out his front teeth. The Death Eater slumped to the ground, unconscious.

_There's only one left._

"Ron! Go get help!" He shouted as he ran to Harry's aid.

* * *

The raven haired boy hid behind an abandoned carriage.

"Come out Potter! I know where you are!" Bellatrix slowly move towards the place where he was hiding.

_No options. Stand and fight. At least I have the element of surprise._

Finding a hole where he could see the Death Eater, Harry took aim.

"STUPEFY!"

The jet of red light hit Lestrange square in the chest. She was thrown back by the force and landed on the ground unmoving.

_This time I got you._

As a precaution, Harry bounded her with ropes. Her wand was safely tucked away in his pocket.

Darren arrived a moment later, "Are you alright?" He asked, looking up and down at Harry, checking for any injuries.

_Not a scratch, good._

Before Harry could answer him, he continued, "How many times do I have to save you?"

"Well…Umm…Trouble always finds its way to me?" Harry answered innocently. "Thanks."

"Where's Ron?"

"He went to get help."

"The aurors will be h…Look out!" Harry pushed Darren away as a spell came flying out of nowhere.

Missing its initial target, the curse hit Harry instead.

He collapsed onto the ground, screaming in agony. His eyes were burning with such intensity that he wanted to die.

"Harry!" the half-vampire couldn't do anything but watched his friend suffer.

"Show yourself!" He shouted to the surrounding darkness. The Death Eater on the ground had _disappeared_.

An evil laughter sounded, bouncing off the walls, making it hard for Darren to locate the source.

_Where's she?_

"There's no need. We shall meet again soon, Darren Shan…"

And there was silence.

Darren knelt down beside his friend. The raven haired boy was obviously in great pain, he was clenching his teeth, willing himself not to scream. His eyes were tightly shut and bleeding. Trails of bright red blood flowed down his face.

The smell stung his nose, _tin foil_.

There was a _whoosh_ of air and Remus Lupin appeared running towards them.

"What happened?" He demanded as he cradled Harry's head between his hands.

Darren was speechless.

"Harry, can you open your eyes?" He asked softly.

With much difficulty, Harry cracked open his eyes a slit.

"I can't…_see_."

* * *

Wakakakak...Please say what you want to say...Your words are very much valued... ;9


	13. Dead or Alive?

Disclaimer: Mine I wished! Wakakaka.

* * *

"It's the Seethus Curse," said Madame Pomfrey as she sat in the gloomy kitchen of 12 Grimmauld Place, surrounded by a group of grim faced Order members. Even Tonks had turned her usual bubble pink hair midnight black. An immovable air of sadness and anger hung in the air.

"Half-blind he is now and the curse would slowly spread until he could see no more…" The mediwitch choked on her last words and dabbed a white embroidered handkerchief at her eye. Harry was like a son to her, it pained her to see him like that.

"Is there any way we could lift this curse?" Inquired Dumbledore, a weary expression etched on his wizened face, the lines formed on his forehead made him look more ancient than before.

She shook her head sadly, "No. Only the one who placed the curse has the power to do so. There's nothing we could do."

"We must capture Bellatrix," said Remus through clenched teeth. _For Harry's sake and his promise to his best friends, James…Sirius…He could not let them down._

Everyone's eyes turned on the werewolf, who stood at the kitchen door. A patch of dried blood was visible on the front of his coat. He could not have bothered to clean it for his mind was overly occupied by the seriousness of the situation at hand.

"We must," he lowered his head and whispered.

Tonks walked over and engulfed him in a hug, "Yes, we must." She patted his back, comforting him.

* * *

Dark ghostly shapes moved around in his field of vision, Harry squinted at them, hoping that his eyes would somehow take focus on the blurred figures. But his attempt was clearly futile, he was _half-blind_.

Anger overwhelmed him, the stark reality that his vision was taken away from him hit him like a blow to the head, numbing his senses. He felt the unfairness of his existence in this world, the world was against him, crushing him again and again, taking away the people he loved, the things he cherished, leaving him feeling…Empty.

_Why am I alive?_ Morbid thoughts unknowingly crept into his mind. He closed his eyes, willing himself to detach from the cold, dark world of reality and into the comforting hands of sleep.

A few minutes slowly ticked by, the raven haired boy twist and turned on the bed, trying to find a comfortable sleeping position, but got himself entangled in the sheets instead. Frustration built up in him when he found that he could not sleep.

He sat up in bed and leaned against the wall, staring blankly ahead.

Darkness surrounded him, night had fallen.

_Why am I opening my eyes for? I can't even see anything!_ He thought bitterly and squeezed his eyes tightly shut.

His thoughts drifted to the conversation he had with Remus a while ago, when the Order members had left. They had decided that he should stay here since it was the safest place for now. He would still be going to Hogwarts in due time, Remus had said, which he guessed that it was not going to be any time soon.

"Dumbledore had feared that it would not be safe for you there anymore, with You-Know-Who rising, perhaps the pureblood supporters would…" Remus left the sentence hanging and looked at Harry with his sad, mournful eyes. The raven haired boy could sense his eyes on him, "I'll be fine, they wouldn't dare try anything there. Hogwarts' my home, I need to go back." He tried to assured his worried guardian.

His effort seemed to have the opposite effect.

"I think it is better if someone were there to keep watch over you at all times, how about a dog?"

"Well…um." Harry was suddenly at a loss for words, he cringe at the idea of having a furry dog dragging him all over the school while it should be him in control. That does not look anything like 'in control'.

An idea occurred to him, "Can I have a snake instead?"

"A snake would be better, yes. I'll talk to Dumbledore about it." He paused for a spit second before continuing, "Speaking of Dumbledore, I have good news. Do you know that Tonks was offered the DADA post left vacant by the unpleasant Miss Umbridge?"

"She was?" asked Harry, surprised at the thought that Tonks was going to teach.

"Yes, she was rather excited," said Remus and he managed to pull out a smile.

There was a knock at the door.

Harry snapped out of his thoughts. "Darren?" He called out without turning his head.

"How do you know it's me?" The half vampire walked into the room and dropped into the chair beside the bed. He was wearing a black jacket over a navy blue shirt with army green cargo pants. The bandage around his neck was partially hidden by the collar of his shirt, black magic was harder to heal Madame Pomfrey had told him and it stung. Darren tried not to be bothered by it.

"Because you are too quiet," Harry answered, still not opening his eyes.

"Can't sleep?"Asked Darren.

He nodded and let out a sigh. "Can you do me a favor?" He turned to face Darren and opened his eyes. He could indistinctly make out the detached dark shape from the surroundings.

Darren could see that there was a milky substance covering Harry's usual bright green eyes, making them look opaque and dull, just like someone who had cataract, only worse.

"Name it," he said, trying not to stare at his friend.

"Hit me in the head."

"What!" the half vampire shot up from the chair, he thought that he had heard it wrong, Harry had just said something like hit him in the head.

"I can't sleep," Harry said miserably and pushed the palm of his hand at his eyes.

"You can take a sleeping potion or whatever that the mediwitch had that can make you sleep."

"I don't want them to know that I have trouble sleeping."

"Okay…Maybe there's something I can do. Mr. Crepsley taught me this move that I'm pretty sure will knock you out, but it's going to hurt a bit." Darren stood up and moved over, flexing his fingers.

"At least I'm off to dreamland," said Harry. He felt Darren's fingers on his neck.

"This is going to be really quick."

"Don't kill me."

"I won't. Goodnight." Darren applied a slight pressure on a point of Harry's neck.

There was a stinging pain and he knew no more.

Darren caught his friend as he slumped backwards and covered him with the blankets.

"Sleep well," said the half vampire before closing the door behind him.

* * *

Harry found himself in an unilluminated hall, surrounded by dark cloaked figures. It took him a second to realize that he could see. _I must be dreaming_, he thought, not aware to the fact that he had been there before. But then someone spoke, the voice chilled him to the spine and it was coming out of himself.

_I'm in the Dark Lord's mind again_, he mused.

He shuddered at the memory of the previous visit, Voldemort was in the midst of torturing someone and his anger was so intense that it gave him a splitting headache that lasted for three days.

It all started after Voldemort had tried unsuccessfully to possess him at the Ministry, he had in some way unknowingly formed a direct link between them. It was a secret that Harry had kept to himself, he knew the risk of going into the Dark Lord's mind, but he kept on wandering there on his own accord. And he did drop a few notes anonymously to the aurors warning about attacks.

_Curiousity should be locked up, because it's going to kill me somehow_, he speculated.

The Dark Lord did not show any signs of noticing his existence in his own mind, which Harry was silently grateful about.

"We are going to strike tonight," a death eater said in a husky voice.

_That voice sounds familiar._

Harry strained to focus on the man's face when Voldemort looked at him. "Well done, Rave Stakely."

His blood froze.

_Rave Stakely, the new Order member_. Harry had a vague recollection of seeing him at Diagon Alley talking to Arthur Weasley. He was tall and looked rather malnourished with a pale sickly skin, he looked like a zombie in all, but he had a friendly face, a face people could trust.

_How wrong they all were_.

"Soon, the boy will be gone and no one will step in my way of taking over the world!"

Harry woke up with a jerk.

"No."

He ran blindly out of the room, shouting at the tops of his lungs. "Remus! Darren!"

Darren rushed out from his room and was almost run over by Harry.

"Whoa, what's wrong?" He stopped Harry with his hands.

"Death eaters are…"

_BOOM!_

The front door exploded into a cloud of dust. Death eaters swarmed in.

Remus appeared beside them. "They've placed a powerful Anti-Disapparition Jinx around the house and blocked the floo system!" He said through the choking dust. "We need to get to the basement! There's a two way hole to the underground dungeon of Hogwarts." He pulled Harry onto his back and raced down the steps into the basement through a door which had appeared out of nowhere. Darren stumbled after him and bolted the door. It melted into the surrounding floor as if it was never there.

It was dark and damp down there.

Remus lit his wand and ran over to a statue of Salazar Slytherine. Harry was left sitting on the stairs.

"Darren! Help me push it to the side."

Half an hour ago, the half vampire had just downed a vial of the dreadful potion that would somehow save his life and he felt downright uncomfortable at the moment. He had trouble focusing on his surroundings, but he managed to help Remus push the half a ton statue to the side.

"Why don't you just use magic to move it?" Darren asked as Remus kneeled on the ground and pulled out a key.

"The statue's immune to magic." He turned the key and the hatch was opened with a clang, musty air blasted into the room.

"Harry you first." Remus carefully dropped the boy into the hole. Harry expected to land on his feet, but found himself lying on his back somewhere below Hogwarts.

"No sudden movements or the boy dies."

Darren felt a wand sticking at his throat_. I prefer if it's a sword_, he mentally noted, surprising even himself that he could still joke in this situation.

"Rave, you couldn't…" Remus was at a loss of words.

"Step away from the hole, slowly," he drawled as death eaters appeared beside him.

Darren quickly calculated the chances they had against them, it was null. There was no way they could stand against so many. He need to act now.

Summoning up the strength he had, Darren took his move.

Moving with inhuman speed, he knocked the man aside and pushed Remus into the hole before closing the hatch. The hatch disappeared into solid ground, leaving no trace of its existence.

"You!" The death eater roared.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

A green light shot out from his wand and hit Darren square in the chest, the half vampire crumpled to the ground, motionless.

_Am I dead?_

_

* * *

_Bwahahahaha! How I adore Cliffies...


	14. My Worst Nightmare

Disclaimer: I solemnly swear I'm up to no good, I wished it was mine, but sadly it wasn't. *Sniffles* Bwahahahahaha! *Looks at you with an evil glare* _Enjoy, while you still can._

* * *

Everything around him slowed to a crawl as he watched the speeding green light head towards him. He tried to get out of the way, but it was _too late_. The death eater's face was scrunched up in a vicious sneer, _mocking him_.

Then, everything turned _black_.

_Is that all? I thought death would be so much more interesting than this!_ The half vampire threw up his hands in dissatisfaction. _Wow, I can even joke in the afterlife. My mind must be going._

He turned around, darkness surround him. An unforgiving aura of _death_ hung thickly in the air.

"Where is the light switch?" He shouted to the surrounding darkness.

No reply. _Great._

"Why is it that death must be black, can't they at least make it _more welcoming_? This is making me _depressed_," he muttered under his breath as he slowly made his way through the immovable darkness, taking count of his every step.

Suddenly, he heard a deafening _crack_ and felt himself falling…

He opened his eyes, sucking in a deep breath and later regretted doing so.

He choked on the dust filled air, rolled over and sat up in a coughing fit.

_Wait, why am I still alive?_

Before he knew it, hands grabbed him from behind, yanking him up roughly.

"You…are supposed to be…_dead!_" A death eater spluttered, pointing a shaking finger at Darren.

"Am I not?" He said, confused.

"The Killing Curse hit you!" The death eater's voice unexpectantly rose to a higher pitch.

"Oh, _that_." The half vampire stared at the shaking death eater. _That man seemed to be scared out of his wits._

"Take him back to the manor!"

Two death eaters manhandled the struggling boy out of the house and disappear, leaving behind the wrecked remains of the old building that was Grimmauld Place.

* * *

They appear in a vast room, lighted only by the silvery full moon.

Dark cloaked figures stood in the shadows, _watching_.

A throne was set before them, occupied by a man that almost looked _inhuman_.

Darren squinted in the poor light, trying to make out the person on top, and found himself staring into the blood red eyes of Lord Voldemort.

"You have failed me, Rave," he said in a dead tone. "Do you wish to influence the decision I'm about to make on _your life_?"

"_No_, I'm willing to accept my punishment for I have _failed_, my lord." The death eater knelt on one knee, his head bowed.

The evil lord looked at the servant before him with his unforgiving eyes.

"Very well, I shall spare you this once, don't fail me _again_." Lord Voldemort waved him away and turned his attention on Darren.

"_Ah, what do we have here?_ A Vampire Prince!" He said in a mocking tone, his eyes narrowed at the half vampire.

Darren stared back at the monster defiantly, his gaze determined.

"You could be a very useful pawn in bringing down the light side, _wouldn't you think so_?" The Dark Lord said as visions of Hogwarts burning to ashes filled his sadistic mind. His mouth slightly curved to form an extremely evil smile.

His prisoner remained quiet.

"Do you have a death wish, _boy_?" Voldemort stood up and walked towards him.

"He survived the Killing Curse, _my lord_." Rave stated. "I was the one who shot him."

"_Interesting…_" The Dark Lord drawled. He grabbed the boy's chin and forced his head upwards, probing into his memories. He found _nothing._ _The boy had a mind barrier._

He pushed harder, willing the wall to crumble.

Darren felt a headache growing, oblivious to what Lord Voldemort was doing. He strained to wrench himself out of the Dark Lord's grip. His attempt was in vain as the grip tightens.

Finally, he spat at Lord Voldermort. In his face.

"_Arrgh!_" The Dark Lord released his hold, wiping away the saliva with his sleeve.

"CRUCIO!"

The half vampire fell to the ground, writhing in pain. He clenched his teeth, willing himself not to scream. He felt his breath coming in short gasps when Lord Voldermort released him from the spell.

_I think the uninteresting death part is better than this,_ he mentally noted, spitting out his own blood.

He pulled himself up and faced the Dark Lord. Anger boiled within him.

_Is that all you've got! Huh? HUH? Um, what am I thinking? Focus Darren! Your life is on the line here!_

_Please let it be quick._

"I won't kill you _yet_. You're no use to me if you are dead." Lord Voldemort said waving his wand at the boy.

_Right, I'm still disposable, how wonderful it is._

"Connelly!" The Dark Lord called out.

"Yes, my lord." A death eater stood out from the half circle surrounding the throne and knelt down.

"_Break him the muggle way_, I want to see how _good_ _he issss_." He ended the last word with a hiss, and sat back in his throne.

All the dark cloaked death eaters backed away, giving them a wide berth.

Darren stared up at the bulky death eater whose name was Connelly.

"Hi Nelly, nice to meet you," he said to _The-One-Who-Is-Going-To-Pulverize-Him._

"What _did you_ call me?" Connelly roared, his eyes looking close to popping out of his smaller than usual head.

"_Nelly?_" The Vampire Prince said innocently.

_Oops, I think I've overdone it_. Though Darren when a fist flew out of nowhere and caught his chin.

_Ouch, that must've hurt. _The half vampire moved his sore jaw. _Still intact._

He jumped out of the way when the death eater came charging at him.

Darren aimed for Connelly's neck and brought down his hand hard when the death eater charged past.

_The-One-Who-Is-Going-To-Pulverize-Him _head dive to the ground, and laid still.

"Bill and Hill, you're next." The Dark Lord ordered, seemingly amused by the fight.

"Bill and Hill, eh? Let's see what your name rhymes with." Darren joked as he tried to bid his time.

"Uh, _kill_?" Bill answered with a crooked smile and together with Hill, he advanced towards the half vampire.

A sentence was now running laps in Darren's head. _This is not happening. This is not happening. This is not happening._

_HELP!_

_

* * *

_Wakakakakaka! I really am Evil! Quoting Scott Evilton "We Live to be Evil"! See the connection? Live=Evil! Muahahahahaha! I just can't get enough of this evil laugh! Till next time, _beware...be very afraid of me_. Can I have a cookie? *Looks at you with a pair of big, round, watery eyes* Please?


	15. Last Breaths

Disclaimer: Quoting Taylor Swift, with some alteration, "You are the best thing that's _never_ been mine." Bwahahahaha! Let us relish _this moment_, with popcorns.

* * *

_I do not plan to die, not now, not ever_, reflected Darren with determination as he worked out his moves. He slowly backed away towards the crowd, not letting the two death eaters any open chances to trap him between them. Things could have gotten worse if they succeeded, the possibility of him winning the fight would be unfortunately _slim_.

The surrounding group was silent as they solemnly watched the scene unfold before them with hawk like eyes. Lord Voldermort rested on the black throne, his blood red eyes followed every slight movement fervently, with an impassive expression etched on his pale face.

Darren eventually bumped into a spectator who gave him a hefty shove. "Get a move on!" He said in a gruff voice.

The half vampire snapped around and threw him a stare that could have bore a hole into him had he not turn away in time.

Darren's sudden slip of concentration on his opponents was _a mistake _that should not have happened.

Bill and Hill, both thickset and half a head taller than Darren struck out at the same time, going for his head and neck, finishing moves that the half vampire only knew too well.

Grateful for his vampire half's agility, the boy narrowly dodged the blows that would have surely ended the fight. He felt the chilling _whoosh_ of air beside his head as the fist flew by.

_Being a half vampire wasn't so bad after all_, he thought when he slide to the death eaters' back and gave them a painful kick on the hind side.

_Staying ahead was how he would win._

_The death eaters thought so too._

Without warning, his opponents expertly twisted around and struck out at Darren's legs.

"Whoa!" The half-vampire exclaimed as he took a leap backwards. _I haven't seen that coming._

Beads of sweat raced down his face and back, making his black shirt stuck to his skin uncomfortably. He wiped away the perspiration with the back of his hand, flicking them away.

Cautiously, he edged to the side, circling the two death eaters. Their eyes are fixed on each other with utmost deliberation, calculating, similar to that of a matador with the bull.

Except in this situation, he had to survive two bulls.

_Two cunning bulls._

Darren knew he had to get out of there fast, but at the moment, the odds were clearly stacked against him.

He was trapped.

Focusing on their features, he had no doubt his foes were _twins_. One of them had sprouted Captain Hook's infamous moustache and mullet while the other was clean cut.

_How could I've not notice it before?_ He mentally kicked himself. _Yes, my observation skills were sure legendary_, he thought sarcastically.

After a few minutes of playing the staring game, Hill was the first to jump at the half vampire, his hands outstretched, grabbing for Darren's throat.

This time he was prepared.

Darren landed a powerful kick on the stomach of the death eater, knocking out the breath from him and sending him flying into the crowd.

_That should keep him down for a while._

Seeing his brother was out of the count, Bill angrily threw out a punch at the boy, which he easily blocked with his forearm.

The fight picked up speed when Bill's strike increased rapidly. Adrenaline surged through Darren's body as he kept up the pace with the death eater.

Weaving through the blows, Darren searched for an opening to hit back, but the man left nothing to chance.

Fear pricked his senses when he saw Hill getting up.

Right at that moment, Bill's fist struck the side of his face in full force. Darren was knocked aside, his head spinning. He pushed the palm of his hand at his forehead, trying to ward of the building headache.

He tasted a tang of iron in his mouth.

Striking back, he took a leap towards the death eater and hooked his legs onto Bill's neck, dragging him down, an action taught by Arra.

Before he could knock out the fallen man, Darren felt something connected with his spine.

He was thrown off to the ground, gasping in pain. The blow had almost paralyzed him. The half vampire found that he could not move without having waves of excruciating pain assault his senses.

Hill was standing over him, a smug smile plastered on his face.

Darren did what he could from the floor.

He kicked the man hard on his groin.

Hill doubled over in pain, cursing.

Agonizingly, Darren pushed himself up from the ground. "Sorry about that," said the half vampire to the red faced death eater before knocking him senseless.

It wasn't over yet.

All of a sudden Bill came up from behind and wrapped his arms around Darren. The man started to squeeze, crushing the boy, slowly, _painfully_. The half vampire struggled with the man's death grip, but he was no match for the older, more superior figure, even with his extra vampire strength. He screamed out in pain when a few of his ribs gave in, snapping like twigs. Fatigue gripped him as the darkness closed in.

_No…_

"_Stop_." A cold voice cut through the still air like ice, shattering the deathly silence as they watched the boy die.

Bill's grip loosened and Darren slid to the tiled floor, breathing heavily. Each breath shook his battered body. He could feel his ribs grating against each other as he pulled in air. Black spots dotted his vision.

The half vampire was gradually slipping into the painless world of unconsciousness when his watch started beeping.

_The potion! _

His shuddering hand instinctively reached into his side pocket, hoping to feel the comforting cold surface of the vial.

But it was…

_Gone_.

_What? _ Panic gripped him as he fumbled with his other pockets. Despair flooded his mind when all he found was a card.

Squinting through the pain, Darren could make out black curly writings on it.

'Dear Darren, You see, I can't let you die now, where's all the fun in that? So, I'll let you live and I'm certainly sure I'll enjoy watching you _suffer_. -Des '

Realization hit him like an oncoming truck.

_He was still alive because of him! _

Anger coursed through his veins as he contemplated his destiny.

_That manipulative old crook!_

Before he could think of anything else, his pain was suddenly amplified beyond bearable. Darren felt like he was burning in the fires of Hell itself. The poison was rapidly sapping away his life force…

The half vampire could feel his own life slowly _slipping away_ through his fingers.

He curled into a ball and his mind tried relentlessly to block out the pain as a last resort to stay alive.

Then, he felt _nothing_.

"_Check the boy_," the Dark Lord ordered Bill, who was looking over his brother.

The death eater moved over and squatted down beside the curled form.

Horror passed over him when he realized the severity of the boy's injuries.

"He's not breathing!"

* * *

*Evil cackle* Muahahahahaha! Have any _evil thoughts_ about where this story's going, just press the R.T.S. link below! ;)

"Sometimes in order to move forward we simply have to pause on pressing rewind." By writehiswrongs


	16. Dead Ends

Disclaimer: What's unrecognizable is mine! Wakakakaka! Welcome to my Evil World…

* * *

Quoting Peter Pan in the scene where he was held at sword point by Captain Hook, "Death is only the beginning of a great adventure."

_I've been dead twice now and I'm not having any fun at all._

The half vampire sat in a wooden chair, facing a window that overlooked the dark forest that surrounded Voldemort's lair. His fingers played with a crystal globe as his mind wandered, replaying the scene over and over again.

Disbelief gripped his mind when the helplessness of the situation finally sank in.

"I've brought you back and you _will_ bow before me."

"_No._"

Darren stared back at the Dark Lord, hatred burned through his eyes.

_Death is a better option than serving this monster._

The shadowy room was empty except for them two.

Even standing straight took all the willpower the half vampire had. He felt _weak_. As if all of his energy was dissipated into nothingness.

His vision blurred and he shook his head to ward off the dizziness that hit him all of a sudden.

Being brought back the second time_ hurts._

He could feel the burning pain in his chest where something had struck him. There was a charred hole burned onto his shirt. An ugly red mark was visible on the skin where under it his heart lies.

"_YOU WILL_." Lord Voldemort's voice cut through his mind like a sharp blade, amplifying the pounding ache in his head.

Darren felt himself gripped by an unseen force, forcing him down. He resisted, gritting his teeth as he tried to pull away from it.

Confusion and anger occupied his head when he realised his limbs were not responding to him anymore.

He went down on one knee with his head bowed before the Dark Lord.

Lord Voldemort looked down on him with satisfaction.

"Now, there's a good _puppet_. I let you live and you will _serve _me. Standing against me is what a fool does, don't you agree?"

"Yes, _my Lord_."

Darren's mind went blank with shock as the words came out of his mouth. He tried to stand up but failed to do so. His rigid body refused to obey him.

"What did you do to me!" He said through clenched teeth.

"_I owned your life, Darren Shan_."

The half vampire looked at the ground with a blank stare when the truth of his cursed fate registered in his weary mind.

_This can't be true_…

Then, something at the edge of his vision caught his attention. A black dagger was lying on the ground a few feet away from him. His numbed mind refused to listen to any logical reasoning of his being. Why the dagger was there, he never asked.

He tried moving his hand that was lying limply on his side and found that he could. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

_This is the only way_…

_STOP_. His mind screamed at him.

He leaned to a side, grabbing for the evil glinting dagger on the floor. A second later, he held the cold blade in his hands, feeling triumphant.

"What are you going to do _with that_?" Lord Voldemort asked, unconcerned with the boy's actions.

"_This._" And Darren buried the dagger into his chest with both of his hands.

He felt the blade cut into his flesh with a sickening sound. A sharp stinging pain exploded in his chest and quickly spread throughout his body. Darren pitched forward and hit the ground. The pain that assaulted his senses seemed _sweet_ if compared to the fate that awaited him if he lived.

He felt the pain, but there was no…_Blood_.

He looked up at Lord Voldermort. A mixture of anger and surprise formed the expression on his face.

Bitting back a scream, he pushed the blade deeper in and twisted the dagger while it lodged in his chest.

He should die _now_. There was no chance his heart was still working.

The tip of the dark blade protruded out of his back and he was _still alive._

_He couldn't die_.

The half vampire was close to blacking out in pain when he heard footsteps on the cold tiled floor.

Voldemort came into his view, standing above him.

The _inhuman_ blood red eyes stared down on his broken form on the ground, _taunting him_.

"It seems that your death wish won't be fulfilled _anytime soon_, _Darren_."

He bent down and wrapped his long pale fingers around the hilt of the dagger. With a quick jerk, he pulled it out of the boy's chest.

The half vampire took in a sharp breath as the blade was dislodged from his body. He lie on the ground, breathing hard. Each breath caused waves of excruciating pain to course through his body.

The hideous gap on his chest closed up rapidly, leaving no sign of the dagger wound. And the blinding pain swiftly disappeared with it.

Not willing to lie on the ground like he was defeated, Darren pushed himself up with his shaking hands. His legs strained to support his weight. Fatigue was slowly overpowering his mind after it had conquered his body.

He stood eye to eye with the Dark Lord.

Pure rage boiled within him, how much he wanted to tear the person before him into pieces and feed them to the raging fires of Hell.

_THUMP._

Darren surfaced from deep within his thoughts when the crystal globe slipped from his fingers and hit the floor.

He bent down and reached for the globe which had rolled into a corner.

_It's time_. A snakelike voice echoed in his head.

As soon as his fingers connected with the crystal globe, the half vampire felt himself being pulled away from where he sat, freefalling through space, not knowing where he was going to end up.

A moment later, he saw the ground came rushing up at him.

With catlike instinct, he automatically adjusted his position in midair and landed on the ground with his feet.

A startled sparrow sped away from the patch of grass where he stood.

Darren's eyes followed the bird as it shot up into the sky and disappeared into the distance. He looked around the wide open field and spotted his destination.

_The Burrow._

He wanted to turn his back on the house and leave, not willing to put anyone close to his heart in danger. But he was a prisoner in his _own body_.

_Move. _

He broke off into a brisk jog towards the house, cutting across the field that surrounded the building. A moment later, he stepped onto the wooden landing of the house with his mud caked shoes and raised his balled up fist to knock.

Darren tried to hold back, but his attempt to resist the dark magic that flowed in his blood with every pulse of his heart was in vain.

The door swung open right at that instant and Mrs. Weasley stood _stunned_, in front of him. Relieve washed over her when she saw that the child standing before her was unhurt.

"Darren!" She exclaimed as she rushed forward and enveloped him in a tight hug. "We're so worried!"

The half vampire said nothing and stood motionless, feeling _disgusted_ at himself.

_This was the last place he wanted to be._

"Are you okay?" Mrs. Weasley put her hands on his shoulder and held him at arm's length as she looked at him with her motherly eyes.

_No. _

"Yeah, I'm fine." He was forced to reply.

"They are searching everywhere for you after the attack on the headquarters, where have you gone?"

"Hiding from the death eaters." He gave her a short answer and faked a reassuring smile.

"I see. Come, I'll take you to Hogwarts now. Everyone's there." Mrs. Weasley said and pulled him into the house, locking the door with a flick of her wand.

Moments later, he stood at the great gates of the castle.

The Hogwarts castle was breathtaking at first sight. Its great turrets rose high above the sky, and flags of different colours unfurled in the soft breeze as it perched on top of towers.

Mrs. Weasley touched the steel lock of a small gate in the wall with the tip of her wand and muttered something under her breath.

With deafening clangs, multiple locks were pulled back, the gate swung inwards, revealing a small muddy path that lead up to the castle door.

The tap of Mrs. Weasley's shoes echoed in the empty halls. Darren walked beside her, unusually quiet.

"Where are we going?" The half vampire broke the silence with a question.

"The infirmary. Madame Pomfrey should have a look at you. It's still hard to believe that you could escape unscathed out of Grimmauld Place."

"I guess I'm lucky."

She gave Darren a warm smile. "Yes you are, _very_."

Taking a turn, they arrived at the doors of the infirmary.

"Ah, here we are." She twisted the knob and pushed against the door into a long room, where rows of hospital bed lined the walls.

Harry turned his head to face the infirmary door as it was opened.

"Who's there?" He asked, trying hard to identify the blur moving figures that he saw.

"Hello Harry dear." Mrs. Weasley rushed over to his side. "Darren's here."

"Darren! Are you alright?" The raven haired boy moved to get up from the bed, locating the person beside Mrs. Weasley.

"I survived." The half vampire replied jokingly.

_Good._ The Dark Lord's voice reverberated in his mind. _Look at the boy's state! It makes all the more easier for you to end his life._

_I won't._

_We shall see. You will, kill Harry Potter._

* * *

An Evil note from an Evil person: Do as you please with the button below. Bwahahaha! Have an Awesome 2011! "An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves!"-Bill Vaughn

Note to self: New Year's resolution…Muahahaha! *holds his black cape to cover half of his face & narrows eyes* You'll never know! Wakakaka! ;D


	17. Exposed

It's been more than a year...Bwahahaha! I guess the suspense had killed quite a few now. *insert evil cackle* Since I'm evil, apologizing for an evil deed is not what evil peeps do. But me not purely evil, so, here it is, *whispers* "sorry". Cookies for everyone who've waited for this *throws cookies into the air*. It's not everyday that I share my hoard of cookies, so, you better catch it!

Disclaimer: It's mine, it's mine, it's mine, it's mine...I wish. ;)

* * *

Just as the explosion tore through 12 Grimmauld Place, Severus Snape knew something was wrong. He was standing infront of the window in his living room, immersed in his thoughts. White fog formed in the air as he breathed out. He had left every light and heater of the house off for he was not planning to stay long. He could feel something coming. A stoic expression was etched on his face as stared blankly at the rain that fell in torrents from the dark, rumbling sky above. His hand was rested on the Dark Mark, it had not burned for days now.

With the Dark Lord on the rise, why was he not summoned yet? Maybe..._No._ He dared not think of that happening now, but what could be the reason other than _this_ _very one_?

A cold gust of wind pricked his neck, alarmed, he twisted around, his wand trained on the uninvited guest. A figure shrouded in darkness was seen at a corner of the room.

"Show yourself!" He yelled.

"Oh Severus, is that how you treat your visitor?" The shadow stepped out into the light, it was Bellatrix Lestrange.

"_Lestrange_, to what do I owe your presence here?" Severus kept his wand trained on her, intuition told him that she was not here just for a friendly chat.

"Now, now, Severus, isn't that rude to have that wand of yours pointed at me, now that I have revealed myself,_ unless_..." She trailed off, a sly smile appeared on her face. "_You are afraid...of something you've done_."

He knew that this was coming sooner or later.

"We know that you are a traitor, _Severus Snape,_" she spat out his name in distaste. "It's a shame though that the Dark Lord had given out the order to have you killed. It's nice having you around." She continued to fake a sympathetic expression which made Snape cringe internally.

She paced around the room, making no move to attack him.

Not taking any chances with the experience witch, Snape sent a cutting curse flying towards her. Just as she had expected, the protective ward around her deflected the spell. Bellatrix let out a wicked laugh, but it was cut short by a dagger that flew out of nowhere and hit her shoulder. She took in a sharp breath and stumbled, shocked that he had outwitted her. Rage burned in her eyes, threatening to burn a hole through the man that stood there.

With a blood curdling scream, Bellatrix whipped out her wand. "_AVADA KEDAVRA!_"

The room was temporarily lighted by the bright green light that shot out from her wand.

A smug smile was visible on Snape's face and then he was gone.

* * *

Mrs Weasley took leave with Madam Pomfrey, talking in hushed voices as they walked towards the matron's office that was located at the end of the infirmary .

Darren was left alone with Harry.

Sensing the opportunity to finish off the menace once and for all, Voldemort took hold of Darren's mind and forced his hand to take out his wand.

There and then, he was about to kill his best friend.

_No, this is not happening_.

With new found willpower to resist, Darren wrestled back the control of his mind, but his efforts were to be crushed by the Dark Lord's overwhelming strength. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead and he clenched his teeth, feeling the unbearable headache growing in his head. The savage pounding of the Dark Lord's mind on the invisible wall that protected what he is, made his head spin uncontrollably.

Darren swayed on his feet as his vision blurred, he stumbled, about to fall, but his hand found the bed rail and he held on to it.

Harry was oblivious to what was happening to his friend. His damaged eyes were not much help at all.

Darren flung his wand away while he was able to. His energy was sapping quickly and it was not long before he loses out on this battle.

"_Don't resist me boy!_" Hissed the Dark Lord, his acid like voice seared the barrier in Darren's mind. The ensuing excruciating pain that assaulted his mind made him slumped to the ground. His knuckles turned white as he tighten his grip on the cold, hard metal, biting back a scream that sat in his throat like a flightless bird.

_I will not yield to this monster!_

Harry felt his bed shook and he realised that Darren had not spoken a word since Mrs Weasley and Madam Pomfrey left.

"Darren? Are you alright?" He asked worriedly, finding it hard to see anything at all.

No response.

Suddenly, his scar errupted in a fiery pain. His hand shot up to his forehead. Harry squeezed his eyes tightly shut, willing the dreaded pain to pass swiftly, but it only intensify, to his dismay. Then, he heard The Dark Lord's voice and someone else's but it was all muffled, strings of intangible words flitted through his mind...

"You'll suffer for resisting me_ fool!_" Lord Voldemort roared, sending waves of pain racking through Darren's body.

"You won't have me as a chess piece to be pushed around!" The half vampire shot back at the Dark Lord before darkness swallowed him whole.

Moments later, which seemed like forever, the pain of his scar disappeared so suddenly just as it did when it came. Harry opened his eyes and realised that Darren was gone.

"Darren?" He croaked, his throat felt unusually raw, unaware that he had been screaming his lungs out moments ago.

He heard a rush of footsteps and recognised the blurred figures that appeared in his view as Madam Pomfrey and Mrs Weasley. And then his blurred eyes caught sight of the half vampire slumped against the side of his bed, motionless.

The door to the infirmary opened with a bang as Remus bolted in, concern written all over his face.

"What happened?" He panted while trying to move the limp boy kneeling on the ground. His hands touched something wet and the werewolf's heart dropped to the bottom of his stomach. The front of the boy's shirt was all stained with blood and his mouth was all covered in it.

Darren crouched in the cold, dark recess of his mind, but he _wasn't _alone. He could _feel_ it. _Someone else _had invaded his mind and was planning to stay, till the cracked walls come crumbling down, till he was really, no longer his own...

* * *

Not much of a cliffhanger here right? Wakakaka...Throw anything you want at me, I'll take it just fine. *smirks and bows*


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